Come Back To Me
by swanqueenwhispers
Summary: A multi chapter - picks up where s4 leaves off. *SQ Style* Canon and everything else be damned ...
1. Chapter 1

**A.N.** _I haven't forgotten about my other story .. this just wouldn't let me go .. my SQ muse has been kicking me with all new s4 finale feels and well .. here I am .. swept away to Swan Queen land, once again. ***sighs***_

 _I listened to_ Storm by Lifehouse _for this chapter .._

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The dagger clinks as it hits the pavement and Regina hears the sound echo all around her. To others it sounds as soft as two glasses coming together in a toast but to the older woman who is now pulling away from Robin and walking toward the fallen blade, well, the sound is deafening and hypnotizing. Robin calls her name and his hand grazes her arm as she inches away from him but she just feels determination now. Determination and a drive to reach that dagger and .. what?

Her mind falters at what will be next .. time seems to have stilled since she gazed at Emma through the swirling black funnel that should have claimed _her_ , swept _her_ up and away .. not _Emma_.

 _Please, never Emma._

She falls to the ground, her knees kissing the cold gravel as her fingertips lightly trace Emma's name that is now etched into the gleaming blade. She closes her eyes and remembers a vision she had tried to forget. Thought she had forgotten. Forgotten with the promise of pixie dust and a lion tattoo and a man who she _thought_ she could love and be happy with. Her fingers dance over Emma Swan's name and she remembers.

 _Emma quickly places the scroll in her palm and the images gallop through her like a steed of wild horses. She is no longer standing in the middle of town, Pan's curse is not looming but there is a darkness around this version of Storybrooke. The sky is bleeding with it. The air is heavy and thick from it like a hazy humid day. The darkness isn't black though, it is a shade of gray and red. And for some odd reason she can't help but think of Henry's favorite scarf, like the two colors were made to be sewn together after all._

 _Emma is standing in front of her. Although she is different. Her eyes are .. cold and distant. No longer swimming in sea green but .. no! Regina shakes her head as she watches herself step closer to .. the Dark One?_

 _Yes, Emma is the dark one. Her skin sparkles a twinkling gold that matches her eyes and Regina can't help but think of that vampire movie Henry loves so much to make fun of because as he puts it, "The book was just so much better, Mom."_

 _She shakes her head again, brushing her sons voice away because God, this is Emma and what the hell is happening here?! She wants to run and grab Emma, shake her and herself even. Just wake them all up from this awful nightmare she is stuck in. But her feet won't move, she is stuck in place and her heart is hammering so loud inside her chest she is surprised the two other women can't hear it. But then again, they can't see her anyway, let alone hear her. She's a ghost, invisible to the naked eye._

 _She sighs and crosses her arms in front of her stomach, holding herself together as she watches herself, (which is entirely weird and too Back to the Future for her own good) inch closer to Emma .._

 _She witnesses a touch .. dare she say a light caress to Emma's wrist and there are words being said, but she can't hear them. Lips are moving and Emma shrugs, looking down at her own wrist and then .._

 _Regina gasps as she watches herself KISS Emma! Kissing Emma .. her head is spinning and she can almost feel the touch of soft lips against her own, a fluttering begins in her chest, like a batch of butterflies have been unleashed inside of her and they make their way down into the valley of her stomach._

 _She can't help but trace fingers along her own lips as she watches on. As a shimmer of light begins to unfold .. to unravel around the two kissing women and then Emma is changing. She can feel her .. can feel the lightness washing through Emma. And .._

 _She is opening her eyes, someone is lightly shaking her, calling her name._

 _"Emma .. "_

 _The name is whispered softly from her lips as she gazes up at the woman peering down at her._

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Regina feels the dagger being pulled away from her touch and she opens her eyes in alarm. She is back in the present and an angry pirate is sneering down at her.

"Do not think for one second, you will be controlling Emma .. " He turns to walk away, gripping the dagger tightly until a fist connects with his jaw, sending him falling backwards as the dagger hits the ground once again in a clunk. A sound that echoes around everyone now. David bends down and sweeps the blade up into his own closed fist.

" _No_ one is controlling _our_ daughter!"

Hook is glaring up at the man, rubbing his chin as Regina stands and walks past him. She has to resist the urge to kick the fallen man, right in the gut.

Instead she opts for a well deserved glare, that only she can deliver and an even more impressive eye roll.

 _Really, what Emma sees in him, she will never know._ _Emma .._

The vision she had, the one she had buried since Pan's curse, since she had given Emma and Henry new memories, is now fresh in her mind and she feels Robin come to stand next to her, but she can't bring herself to look at him.

Guilt twists around inside of her because who she really wants to be gazing upon, to feel standing next to her once more, is somewhere lost and alone and is full of a darkness that should have been bestowed upon her. She trembles and wraps her arms around her mid section. She moves toward Snow and David before Robin can touch her. Before his voice can caress her ear.

David eyes her wearily and she can't blame him. She is hurt a little at his trepidation but she won't voice it. She needs that dagger though, she needs to summon Emma. She needs ..

What does she need? How is she supposed to explain all of this to the two idiots? They will not understand. She barely understands. And Emma? How is Emma going to understand?

 _"And a kiss .. a kiss is enough?" Belle asks._

 _"True loves kiss will break any curse .. " Regina smiles at her._

Regina's eyes shine with tears as she remembers that conversation. A walk she shared with Belle so long ago now, when she was merely trying to manipulate Belle, to get to Rumple. _The Dark One._

Regina feels an overwhelming blur of emotions wash through her and then a fresh layer of blackness coats her as she faints and hits the ground.

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	2. Chapter 2

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Regina opens her eyes and for a moment she sees Emma staring down at her. For a fleeting second, there is half a smile dimpled amid a worried gaze and then the younger woman is gone. Snow is peering down at her instead, asking if she is alright.

She tries to stand and then Robin is there, touching her and a wave of nausea washes through her. It's all too much and her brain feels fuzzy. Hollow. Forgetful.

"Regina, are you okay? I think you hit your head." Robin is helping her to her feet and his arm stays wrapped around her waist. His touch feels wrong now, but she can't remember why.

There is something needling her, wanting to resurface and show itself but her mind is drawing a blank.

"I think she might have a concussion, David." Snow whispers as she looks on with concern at Regina's unfocused gaze and pale face.

He nods in agreement before saying, "We should get her to Whale."

Regina slowly slips away from Robins hold and walks to David and Snow. "I'm fine .. I .. I'm just having a hard time remembering .. _something_." She brings a hand to her forehead, willing whatever it is that's just under the surface to come forward. She knows it has something to do with Emma, but what?

 _Damn it._

"David, I .. I need you to give me the dagger .. please?" Her eyes brim once more with a fresh well of tears and she takes a deep breath to try and still them from falling. To collect herself and will her voice not to break. "Please Snow .. "

Snow can only stare at the woman in front of her. She tilts her head and for a moment she can remember another time when she was just a child and this same woman was kneeling in front of her, pleading with her and telling her about True Love.

 _"True love is magic .. "_

"David, give Regina the dagger." Her voice is quiet but firm.

"You can't be serious?" Hook steps forward and Regina flicks her wrist sending him falling backwards. His ass hits the pavement with a hard thud and he winces in pain.

"I like you better when you're kissing pavement, Captain." Regina sneers, her dark eyes glaring down at him.

"Yes, well, there she is Ladies and Gentlemen, the _Evil Queen_ in all her glory. Tell me again, why Emma turned Dark for the likes of _you_? You're already evil what's a little more darkness added to it, huh?"

"Stop it! The both of you! Just .. you're both acting like children! Charming, give Regina the dagger. Let her bring Emma back and .. true love's kiss will save Emma. Right, Regina?"

Regina spins around and her eyes widen, because there it is again. That nagging feeling in her brain, a thought, a memory but what does True love have to do with it?

"I'm sorry, what?"

"A kiss made from True Love .. bring Emma back and Hook can kiss her, she will be saved." Snow nods her head, her face beaming with a smile that makes her eyes shine with hope.

Regina has to fight the urge to roll her eyes before she decides to play along with Snow's ridiculous plan. If it gets her the dagger and a way to Emma then so be it. She glances at Hook who has had the hindsight to stay down on the ground, like a good dog, she thinks. She smiles briefly in amusement as he glares up at her.

She wonders if he can read her mind before she shakes her head and brings herself back to what is actually important.

 _Summoning Emma._

She doubts Hook is Emma's true love but she'll take any shot she can at the moment, to right this wrong and save Emma.

She turns back to Snow and David and puts out her hand. David looks at his wife, silently questioning her with his eyes.

 _Are you sure about this?_

Snow answers him with a voice strong and sure. "Yes. Go on." She nods her head toward Regina.

He sighs heavily before placing the dagger in her hand. "I can't believe I am doing this." He mumbles before stepping back and allowing Regina more room.

She feels that familiar tug in her stomach as soon as her skin touches the blade. A warmth courses through her and she finds it comforting, like she is meant to do this. A sense of deja vu maybe? She wonders for a moment if she should wait, wait and see if what she has lost since she fainted will come back, before trying to summon Emma.

The desire to see her is too strong though. The need to have Emma here just too much for her to try and reason with herself.

She wants Emma back and okay.

 _"Emma Swan .. I summon thee .. "_

A rumble of thunder crashes through the sky and a heavy rain begins to fall as streaks of lightning flash rapidly. They make a run for shelter and it feels like they are racing into the eye of a hurricane as they push themselves forward against the heavy winds and sheets of rain that are bellowing around them.

They all manage to make it inside Granny's Diner as the door roughly bangs shut behind them. The lights go out a second later and the town is riddled in darkness.

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	3. Chapter 3

**A.N.** _I listened to_ Please Remember by Leann Rimes _for this chapter._ :)

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"Where is she?" Hook's eyes dance quickly over each area the light from his flashlight catches. "Regina, where the hell is she?"

Regina stares down at the dagger, her eyes focusing on Emma's name. She softly whispers an answer. "I don't know."

"But she's here, right?" The pirate asks. "I mean, there's the wind and all the rain and - "

"Darkness." Snow exclaims as she clicks on her flashlight.

Regina's eyes snap up to catch Snow's and she nods her head. She feels an energy close to her, a soft whisper against her ear. A warm caress along her cheek. She closes her eyes and takes a breath, letting the air fill her lungs before she exhales slowly.

 _Hello, Regina._

Dark eyes widen as she hears Emma's voice in her own head.

 _Emma?_

 _Yep, it's me, in the flesh .. well, in the brain, I suppose._

 _How .. why .. where are you?_

 _Outside._

 _It's raining outside._

She can hear Emma shrug. _I have an umbrella._

 _Emma .._

 _When did that start?_

 _When did what start?_

 _You calling me Emma .. kind of like our son statements. I mean you hated me, it was always Miss Swan this and Miss Swan that. My son this and my -_

 _Enough. Where were you, where did you go?_

 _The Bermuda Triangle. Fun fact, it's actually a circle .. I sent you a postcard, it must have got lost in the mail. How long has it been anyway? Since I .. got swept away?_

 _Less than an hour._

 _Seriously? Jesus, Regina, you really know how to let a girl breathe._

 _Get in here now!_

 _No._

 _You have to do what I say._

 _Aah, but you didn't say it, now did you? I love loopholes._

Regina turns her back on the rest of the group and walks to the door, her eyes scanning outside, trying to see if Emma is indeed there. She can't see much though through the heavy rain that is falling.

 _Besides, it's not going to work._

 _What isn't?_

 _My mother's brilliant idea. The one you detest so much. Hook kissing me with True Love to free me._

 _How do you know about that? I -_

 _It's kind of banging around inside your head, like a very pissed off Incredible Hulk smashing the walls, wanting out. You are quite angry about this. Why?_

Regina flings open the diner door and rushes down the steps and walkway until she is standing in the middle of the street. "Emma Swan, get out of my head and get your ass here, this instant!"

Emma appears in front of her and she is indeed holding an umbrella. She extends it out to the older woman. "Here, I think you might need this. It probably would have been a good idea to tell me to stop the rain _before_ coming out here, ya know."

Regina glares at her and she puts her hands up. "Just saying, Regina. You kind of look like a drowned rat." She flicks her wrist and the rain stops.

"Get in that diner and kiss the pirate!"

"Nope, not gonna happen. You can't command sexual favors of any kind even something as trite as kissing. It's in the handbook. Oh, I forgot to tell you, I'm a part of a union .. neat, huh? The Dark One has a union, I have to pay dues but we all have our crosses to bare, I suppose."

Regina stares at her for a moment and then she begins to laugh. A laugh that reaches her stomach, tumbling around until she is bending over as she grips her sides.

Emma thinks it's the most beautiful sound she has heard in awhile.

 _Pure laughter coming from Regina._

She smiles and is quite proud of herself for this feat before her face falls as she sees the army of all that is holy and good, stampeding into the street.

Regina hears the footsteps and turns herself, facing the group as she wipes tears from her eyes.

"Oh god, Emma .. we were so worried. We - "

"It wasn't even an hour, Snow .. I'm fine." She rolls her eyes.

They all continue to stare at Emma until even Regina has to turn and face the blonde again and for the first time she really looks at the younger woman.

Her hair has dark ebony streaks running through sunshine yellow, and it's cut short. The length touching just at her shoulders. Regina has to resist the urge to step forward and run her fingers through it as she takes in what Emma is in fact wearing. She has on black leather pants that hug smooth thighs and cup a perfect ass, with toned arms and supple breasts being shown off by a dark purple tank top.

Regina's eyes linger over her chest and Emma smirks, golden eyes dancing.

 _Too bad about that sexual favors clause huh, your Majesty._

Regina blushes and snaps her eyes up to meet Emma's.

 _What in the world are you wearing?_

 _Clothes. And don't act like you abhor leather .. I've seen you rock a pair of leather pants a time or two._

Hook steps forward and the movement makes Emma narrow her eyes. "Don't even think about it."

David and Snow exchange a look, because how does Emma know? Did Regina tell her? They all look around confused until Hook breaks the silence.

"Come on love, let's get you back and _dressed_ to your old self, shall we .. " He inches forward and once again finds himself sailing backwards, this time his face hits the pavement.

"There, kiss that." Emma sneers.

Regina has to cover her mouth to hide a smile. She wants Emma back as much as the rest of them but the sass in Emma is something to be desired and she admires it.

She can't help but think her and Emma would have been quite a pair back in the Enchanted Forest, if the Evil Queen ever met up with the likes of one Dark Emma Swan.

 _I would like to think so too._

Regina sighs. She forgot Emma can hear her thoughts, or whatever she is doing.

 _At least, just try and see if the kiss works, Emma .. do you want Henry to see you like this?_

Emma's eyes soften with his name and she crosses her arms in front of her chest, glaring at Regina. _Don't use the kid, Regina .. that's hitting below the belt._

 _I'll do whatever I have to Emma, to get you back. I owe you that much .. you .. you saved me and -_

 _Stop it. I don't need your pity._

"It's not pity, damn it!" Regina quickly covers her mouth, her eyes darting to the others as she realizes she spoke out loud.

"What's going on here?" Snow's eyes narrow and she looks at Emma, who swiftly looks away and then at Regina, who looks embarrassed.

"Are you two .. talking with your - "

"Apparently, Emma and I can communicate inside our .. heads?" Regina shrugs and looks down at the dagger she has been holding onto in a closed fist. The warm blade feels nice against her skin, as if it's a part of her now and she kind of likes it.

 _Like she is holding Emma in a way._

Emma arches an eyebrow at her and she quickly slips the dagger inside her jacket pocket and glances away, her eyes find Robin's for the first time since this whole ordeal started and she forces a smile to her lips. A reassuring smile that is probably more for her than for him at this point.

"Emma, what am I thinking?" Snow asks with wonder and a dash of hope in her eyes.

"I have no idea." The _And_ _I don't care_ is left unsaid but can still be heard in her tone.

The old Emma would have tried to soften that blow, to acknowledge the hurt look that crosses her mother's face but this Emma, has no desire for coddling.

"Look, this has been swell and all but I've got places to see and darkness to be so .. Regina, if you would be so kind as to hand over the dagger, I'll be on my way."

"What?!" Regina, Snow and David yell at the same time.

Emma taps her foot in annoyance and puts her hand out. "The dagger, Regina. Now."

Regina takes a step forward, an old familiar defiance taking root in her. "No. I think not."

Emma laughs softly as she steps forward, bringing herself inches away from lips that deserve to be kissed and dark brown eyes that seem to melt a little darker as she whispers along the shell of an ear, "Don't forget, Regina, I know what you _think_."

A swirl of red and gray smoke circles around her and then she is gone.

Regina watches the two colors fade away into the night air and that eluding thought is there again, pressing against her.

 _She needs to remember._

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	4. Chapter 4

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"Regina, get her back here." Snow grabs her shoulder and shakes her. "Regina!"

"I .. " She shrugs away from Snow's touch and doesn't make eye contact with the brunette when she replies, "I need to speak with Belle .. "

"Um .. no .. what you _need_ to do is summon Emma back here. She .. she wants to stay dark, Regina. I mean, is that what she meant, by asking for the dagger?"

"I imagine so, I'm not sure."

"Can't you read her mind?"

Regina finally lets her eyes catch Snow's and if she didn't know any better she thinks she can hear a hint of jealousy in the woman's voice.

She pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs heavily. "Emma is somehow in control of that thought .. thing .. I don't have access to her thoughts or rather .. I don't know how the hell to explain this, okay?" She crosses her arms and glares at Snow before hissing the next statement with a sharp voice. "That's why I need to speak with Belle .. she of all people knew Rumple as the Dark One more .. " Regina bites her lower lip struggling to find the correct wording of how to put this without throwing a glowering spotlight on herself and Emma's connection now.

"I believe the word you're looking for is _intimately_ , your majesty."

"Yes, well .. and don't call me that."

"Oh, I'm sorry, is that a pet name only Emma is allowed to call you by?" Hook raises an eyebrow at her.

She has to refrain herself from sending him face first into the asphalt again. She glares instead as she walks around him. "Shut up Captain."

Snow clutches David's arm as she whispers in his ear, "What does he mean by that? I don't understand what he means by that?" She watches as Regina continues to walk away and then her eyes catch Robins.

He doesn't know if he should follow Regina or not, she didn't even look his way before leaving, he thinks. He doesn't understand what is going on, all he knows is, Regina's eyes aren't the same, there is a sadness inside of them now and she looks like she is carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. He wants to fix it for her, take it all away but there is a stirring beginning inside that is somehow telling him that he is not the one that can do that for her. He sighs and his eyes find Snow's and if he didn't know any better, he thinks she is realizing the same thing as her eyes flicker back toward Regina.

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"I'm sorry, you did what?" Belle asks.

"Emma did it, I .. "

"She saved you?"

Regina glances down at the ground as she softly nods her head. "Yes and now - "

"She is the new Dark One."

"Yes and there's something else, we can communicate inside our heads .. or whatever. Rumple never told me he could do that, did he ever mention this to you?"

"No, never .. Regina, I don't think Rumple could read thoughts, he neglected to tell me if he could, but then again, he always - "

"Liked to live in half truths, riddles and secrets."

"Yes, I think he thought it somehow gave him the upper hand." Belle sighs. "So .. Emma can talk with you, with just her thoughts .. her inner voice?"

"Apparently .. what does that mean, exactly?"

"I'm not sure, it might mean that she is more powerful than Rumple was .. that she can tap into .. wait, can she read other's thoughts?"

She looks away from Belle and wishes her answer could be yes instead of no. "It seems for now, it's just me."

"Because you have the dagger? Maybe?"

"I was hoping you could tell me, Belle .. I .. she .. " Regina stops her train of thought because she doesn't have the strength to go on with this topic. She is beginning to feel emotionally drained and there is a pulling in her gut that she should go home, which begins to make her anxious and worried even more so.

"Regina, True Love's kiss should bring her back - "

"She doesn't want to come back! That's the problem, Hook tried to .. she magicked him face first into the pavement, Belle!"

She begins to pace around the shop, shaking her head roughly as she brings fingertips to her forehead before glancing at Belle again. "I think I had .. I remembered something, or saw something before I summoned Emma and then I fainted, and when I awoke, it's just gone. But True Love's kiss, I think that was part of it and .. I wish I could just remember!"

Belle moves around the counter and places a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Regina, you'll remember, it will come back to you. In the meantime, go home and rest. You look .. "

The word _dreadful_ pops into her brain but she somehow doubts using that choice of wording will go over well with the once regal woman. She taps her brain for a more suitable phrase. "Exhausted .. get some sleep and I'll consult my books, okay, we'll meet up tomorrow and go over things again."

She smiles faintly at Regina hoping to give the woman some form of reassurance before walking away.

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Regina magics herself home and the swirling smoke hasn't even fully cleared before she sees Henry standing in front of her with arms crossed over his chest and worry littering his eyes.

"So .. Ma is currently sitting under the apple tree, and has magically locked me in the house so I can't go out there to speak with her. I've been trying to call you! What the hell is going on, Mom?!"

Regina goes to pull out her cell but realizes it's not in her pocket. "I'm sorry, Henry, I seemed to have lost my phone .. I .. "

Henry taps his foot in annoyance. "You're avoiding here .. who cares about the damn phone, what is wrong with Emma?!"

At this point, _everything_ , Regina thinks. Everything is wrong. And not just with Emma. Everything is a mess and her heart is thumping rapidly with just the mere knowledge that Emma is so close by and the comfort this brings to her, is terrifying in it's own right and she realizes she can't tell Henry any of this as he continues to stand in front of her, pleading with his eyes for an answer, for some kind of understanding.

"Henry, I need you to pack a bag, and - "

"No freaking way!"

"Henry Daniel Mills! Pack a bag now, you are going to your grandparents." Regina reaches for her phone before remembering she doesn't have it. "Give me your phone."

He slams it into her palm before turning and stomping up the stairs.

She watches her son storm away and all she can do is sigh before she brings the gadget to her ear.

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She returns to the mansion after puffing herself and Henry to Snow's and she has to resist the temptation to go to Emma. She opts for a much needed hot shower and change of clothes instead before biting the bullet and trying to open the door that leads to the backyard. It does in fact open without a problem and she is grateful Emma's magic hasn't banned her as well. Although she has a funny feeling, her possessing the dagger, has something to do with this free pass to Emma.

The younger woman doesn't glance up when she brings herself to stand in front of her. She is sitting against the tree, with her knees drawn up, and her arms folded around them, chin resting along a forearm. Her eyes are closed as a gentle breeze ruffles her hair every now and then. Regina thinks she looks breathtaking and then waits for an arched eyebrow to be thrown her way when Emma hears _that_ thought.

The arched eyebrow never comes though as Emma's soft voice breaks into the silence.

"I can't read your thoughts anymore, Regina .. just so you know. You were giving me a headache." Emma shrugs, acting like it's the most casual thing in the world but the truth is, she doesn't want to know what the searing brunette is thinking anymore. It was too much and not enough all at the same time.

"Yes, well .. it did kind of feel like - " Regina wants to say, it feels like she could see her naked but decides maybe that isn't the best analogy to use before Emma speaks for her anyway.

"An invasion of privacy .. maybe." The younger woman shrugs again and wraps strong arms tighter around herself.

"You look cold, come on, let's go inside, Emma."

"Are you commanding me to go inside?"

Regina sits down next to her, and their shoulders brush together. "No."

"But you could, you have all the power .. again. Which is what you like, right? Power .. being in control .. especially of others."

Regina hears the resentment in Emma's voice and she tilts her head toward the woman, eyes narrowing. "Where is this all coming from?"

"Do you love him?"

"Excuse me? Of course, I love him."

"Not Henry."

Regina gulps and she lowers her eyes away from Emma's. She remembers back when Emma asked her if she loved Henry, that first day, standing on the walkway, outside her home. It was the question that had provoked Emma to stay in Storybrooke. A day that should feel like ages ago now but sitting here, next to Emma, it feels like it was just yesterday. She wonders how that is possible, how time can play tricks on you like that. She shakes her head and finally answers the question.

"Of course, I love him."

"Well, I certainly hope so, Regina, cause I kind of cursed myself to eternal Darkness here for you and - "

"And who the hell told you to?! I distinctly remember telling you, NO! But you never listen, you always have to be the god damn Savior! Even if it means - "

"Screw you! I don't need this crap from you! I really don't. Just give me the dagger and I can get on with my life." Emma puts out her hand.

"I'm not giving you the dagger, Miss Swan. Goad me all you want, it's not going to happen. I'm going inside, you are welcome to join me if you so choose. There's a guest bedroom next door to Henry's room."

Emma clenches her jaw as she watches Regina walk back into the house.

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She hears Emma on the stairs an hour later, soft footfalls that stop for a moment by her shut door and then proceed to continue down the hall. The sharp click of the guest bedroom door being shut is the last thing Regina hears before she closes her eyes and finally allows sleep to carry her away.

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	5. Chapter 5

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Emma enters the kitchen the next morning clad in just a pair of black underwear and a purple tank top to find Regina standing in front of the stove making breakfast.

A soft blush colors the older woman's face when she turns around to offer Emma a smile and her eyes dip low to follow a path back up long slim legs.

She doesn't know if she should comment on Emma's lack of clothing or if that is what Emma wants, to gauge a reaction out of her. She chooses to stay silent.

She turns back to the pan and quickly asks, "How do you like your eggs, Miss Swan?"

"Miss Swan, huh? So, it's a Miss Swan day, I see." Emma lifts herself up onto the counter top and leans back against the cabinet. "You're making me breakfast, Hell must have frozen over or Emma Swan must have turned into the forces of Darkness." She chuckles at her own joke and tilts her head waiting for Regina to look her way.

She doesn't. Her eyes stay locked on the eggs as she cracks a few open.

"Is there bacon?"

"There can be .. yes. There's some in the bottom left drawer."

Regina realizes she should have just gotten the bacon out herself when she feels Emma brush against her back, as she places the package next to her.

A soft murmur of, "Here you go .. " gets whispered against her ear before Emma's warmth is gone and she is perching herself back up onto the counter top.

Regina slowly lets out a breath as her eyes glance over to the exposed creamy skin again and dark bruises.

 _Dark bruises?_

She immediately stops what she is doing and before she has time to think she is standing in front of Emma, tracing fingertips gently over an upper thigh.

"What the hell is this?" Regina's eyes glance up and catch Emma's.

"Um .. you feeling me up, is what it feels like to me." Emma waggles her eyebrows and smirks.

She snaps her hand away and clutches her mid section. "I'm serious, Emma .. where did those bruises come from?"

Emma stares into Regina's eyes for a moment and then glances down at her hands, before quickly grabbing one and pulling her forward, until the woman is standing right in front of her. Regina gasps softly and is immediately aware of Emma's legs brushing each side of her hips.

"What are you doing?"

Emma tilts her head and studies Regina's hand, lightly trailing her own fingertips over the tips of Regina's. "I'm checking to see if I burned you, you moved your hand away so fast, your majesty .. like my skin was fire or something." Her eyes catch Regina's again and the older woman can see small flecks of sea green swirled inside of gold and she finds this strangely comforting.

Like she is able to see a part of her Emma still, buried amid the dark but there nonetheless.

 _Her Emma? God, Regina .. get a grip._

She shakes her head and is oh so grateful, Emma can no longer read her mind because she realizes as Emma's legs warm her own and their chests are almost touching that she wants nothing more than to bridge the mere inches of space left between them, and kiss her. She wants to feel those legs wrap around her as she curls a fist into the soft fabric of Emma's tank top, while guiding the other woman's lips to her own.

"Regina?" Emma whispers her name and it sounds like bells chiming.

"Hmm .. " Regina can't seem to take her eyes away from Emma's and the refreshing sea green shade she has found once more.

"The doorbell .. someone is ringing the bell."

Emma lets go of her hand and closes her eyes before a swirl of red and gray smoke replace where she just had been.

Regina leans forward, placing her hands on the counter as she tries to calm her racing heartbeat.

 _What is this woman doing to her? She needs .. god, she needs a cold shower._

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina manages to calm her nerves and walk to the foyer as she runs fingers quickly through her hair and tightens the silk robe she is wearing before opening the door.

Belle is standing on the other side, clutching a thick book against her chest and biting her lower lip nervously.

"I'm sorry I didn't call first, Regina .. I .. well .. I found something I thought you should read .. immediately." A light pink hue colors Belle's cheeks and she lowers her eyes to the ground.

Regina tilts her head, narrowing her eyes as she takes in Belle's demure.

 _Is she blushing?_

Regina's eyes narrow even more as they fall to the book that is wrapped in the younger woman's arms and she can't help but feel her own cheeks grow warm.

What could possibly be written in a book to make Belle rush over here and blush no less? There's a part of Regina that doesn't want to know, that wants to simply just shut the door and send Belle on her way. The rest of her wins out though because she knows she needs to hear whatever Belle is about to tell her.

She sighs and opens the white wooden door further, and waves her hand, giving silent permission for Belle to enter her home.

Belle shakes her head no quickly and holds out the book.

"I think .. I think it best, you read this .. alone. I marked the chapters for you. Call me when you want to talk .. if .. _if_ you want to talk that is."

Belle all but throws the book at her before turning and jogging down the steps and walkway. Regina watches her round the tree lined corner and then she is left alone, with the mysterious book.

She leans her head back along the closed door, clutching the heavy book against her chest and shuts her eyes. _She can do this .. whatever is in this book, she can deal with it. She once ruled an entire realm, she can certainly tackle a few pages in a musty old book._

She makes her way into the Study and unties her robe again, letting it fall open as she sits down on a plush ottoman, letting the morning light from the window spill onto the pages of the book, she has flipped open.

She traces her fingertips through corners of pages, until she finds the marker, Belle has left and her eyes dance quickly over the words as she begins to read.

 _A born Savior will have many tasks. Obstacles that will stand firm, unyielding .. paths must be chosen around Fate. Fate will try and persuade the Savior, tempt her. Yes, this Savior will be born a girl. A free spirit .. a wild steed. She alone must tame herself. Other's will try and fail. Except one, if Fate is avoided and free will is found._

 _The Queen._

Regina gasps and slams the book shut. Her hands shake as she slowly stands. She wants to call out Emma's name, to have her here, to help remind herself that this is all nonsense. Craziness. Absurdity. Her and Emma are in fact NOT the ones being prophesied. Her eyes fall onto the closed book and she bites her lower lip, trying to still it's slight tremble.

 _Are they?_

She leaves the room, returning a few moments later with a stiff drink, she needs desperately. She winces as she swallows the burning liquid down, while eyeing the book. The sound of the glass hitting the table echoes around her as she sits once more and lets her fingertips brush along the smooth pages, as she begins to read again.

 _The Queen and the Dark Knight. For it is seen, the Savior will indeed become a Dark Knight for the Queen. A decision many will oppose including Fate. A blade will bleed black, soiling the Savior. A choice made willingly and out of True Love, for her Queen._

Regina's eyes falter over the words, _True Love_ and she absentmindedly brings a fingertip to her lips as she closes her eyes. A memory comes back to her, of when she awoke after passing out, before Pan's curse, of how she whispered Emma's name as the blonde woman stared down at her. She knows this is what she has to remember, she has to remember what she saw when she touched the scroll. That's what she has lost and as her heart pounds rapidly inside her chest, she knows without a shadow of a doubt, True Love has something to do with it.

The colors Red and Gray. Emma being the Dark One. All of this is part of what she can't remember. Somehow, it's all a part of the missing ingredients of a recipe she can't remember how to make.

She shakes her head and turns the page only to find it blank. A blank white canvas stares back at her and she realizes, she is at the end of the book. No more pages. No more anything. Her help is gone and nothing makes sense. Emma loves Hook and she loves Robin. Or is that what the book was talking about? Are these two men, Fate's choice?

She grips the book, raising it a few inches off the ottoman and shakes it, hoping against hope it will jar something, drop an answer into her lap, anything. She sighs in frustration as it just lays in her hands, heavy and dormant.

A familiar swirl of red and gray smoke materializes in front of her and a quiet whisper of, "What's this?" echoes around her as Emma appears, sitting across from her on the space where the book had just rested. She timidly touches a corner of the book and asks, "Can I read it?"

~sqsqsqsq~


	6. Chapter 6

**A.N.** _Thank you for all the favorites, follows, and reviews/thoughts you've shared .. this story is special to me and so are all of you! I'm grateful to be a part of Swen! I listened to_ Enchanted by Taylor Swift _for this chapter._ :)

~sqsqsqsq~

Emma can hear Regina swallow and her eyes watch as the older woman's skin flushes pink.

Her eyes twinkle with amusement. "Oh, I get it. I know what it says." She quickly lets go of the book.

"You .. you do?" Regina's eyes widen in surprise.

"Sure .. I'm guessing that was the _beloved_ Robin Hood at the door and he just had to bestow upon you his .. diary?" Emma laughs. "Here's the thing, Regina .. if you would just give me the dagger than all of this .. " She waves her hand between the two of them, "Can just be forgotten .. poof, like magic. Come on, what do ya say?" Emma winks at the woman who is just staring back at her with dark brown eyes still wide.

She waits a minute but Regina is still just looking at her, or looking through her, like her mind is miles away and then Emma has a new thought, and she laughs again.

"I just realized something, Hood and Hook .. I mean what are the chances we are both .. well, we _were_ both dating men with such similar names? Almost like - "

" _Fate_ .. " Regina says the word so quietly, Emma almost doesn't hear it. Her eyes glance down at the book and then back up to Regina's, whose glisten with a watery shine.

"Regina, that isn't Hood's Diary filled with love mud is it?"

"No, it isn't."

"Of course not, because _that_ would be ridiculous."

Regina sighs and Emma notices her hands tremble a bit as she places the book down between them.

"Emma .. I - "

"You know what, on second thought, never mind. I don't want to know what's in that wrinkled up book. You know what I want?" Emma leans in closer until she is a breath away from her.

Regina can see the shade of sea green dancing in Emma's eyes again and she sighs contently, feeling a calmness wash over her. Emma watches as she licks her lips and for a second she wonders what it would feel like to kiss this woman. The word Home pops in her brain and she feels goosebumps tickle her skin.

Kissing Regina would feel like Home? _Jeez, Emma .. get a grip._

"What do you want, Emma?"

Regina's hand touches her knee and Emma stutters out, "Home .. I mean .. _food_ .. I'm starving!" She takes Regina's hand into her own and pulls her up. She waits for Emma to let go but she doesn't, instead she threads her fingers through Regina's as they make their way back into the kitchen, and Regina realizes holding Emma Swan's hand, feels like coming home.

~sqsqsqsq~

After breakfast, Regina busies herself by washing the dishes and Emma grabs a dishtowel to dry. Regina doesn't talk, she just focuses all her energy on scrubbing, and trying to ignore the fact that Emma is standing right next to her and every time their shoulders brush it feels like she's getting a shot of warmth injected into her bloodstream. At least Emma is fully dressed now, she thinks. No more bare legs and toned arms to distract her as Emma has chosen a pair of dark blue jeans and a black cardigan sweater to wear. Regina glances down at her own silk robe and realizes, she still needs to get dressed. She shakes her head.

 _Emma has thrown a time wrench in everything, it seems._

The younger woman gets bored quickly with the drying end of things and sighs heavily as she looks at the neglected dishwasher. Why doesn't Regina just use that contraption or even magic to clean up? She's about to ask just this when the doorbell chimes. She touches Regina's shoulder and feels the sudden flinch under her fingertips.

"Jeez, jumpy much? Have fun with whatever is behind door number 1." Emma grins at the older woman before puffing away in a swirl of smoke.

Regina rolls her eyes even though Emma is no longer there to see it and throws the sponge into the sink. She wipes her hands quickly on the dishtowel Emma has left on the counter and makes her way to the foyer.

Robin is staring at her when she flings the door open and her eyes widen a little in surprise. She doesn't really know why she is alarmed he is here but she can't help but realize her heart is quiet upon the sight of him. There is no elated feeling coursing through her. She feels nothing.

He notices how neutral her eyes remain, how they don't light up and his shoulders sag as he looks away for a moment.

"Robin? Why are you here?"

And that stings as he brushes past her, not waiting for an invitation into the house.

He looks her up and down and narrows his eyes at the robe she is still wearing. "A bit late in the morning, to not be dressed, Regina." He looks around the foyer and makes his way to the bottom of the stairwell before looking back at the woman who is now climbing the steps as well, to stand next to him.

"Is she here?"

Regina's eyes glance away and Robin notices the pink hue that graces her features. His eyes find the floor again as he sighs, "Of course, she is."

"Robin, I - "

"Do you .. " He steps forward and grabs her arm, pulling her against him as he whispers softly in her hair, "Do you _love_ her? Because I think you do."

She doesn't say anything, just stares ahead, over his shoulder as he continues to whisper, "I know about the _book_. So much for pixie dust and Lion tattoos .. " He pushes her roughly away and Regina stumbles back a few paces, caught off guard with the momentum, she falls to the ground.

Robin's face fills with concern as he reaches to help her up but a swirl of red and gray smoke bellows in front of him, blocking his path to Regina and then Emma is there, golden eyes that instantly turn black lock on his as he is thrown backwards into the wall. His head slams into the hanging mirror and it and him smash to the floor. Emma moves like lightning and is crouching over him, holding a shard of broken glass to his throat.

"Emma, stop!" She quickly scrambles to her feet, running to the other woman, and grips her arm. "Emma .. "

Regina's touch and pleading brown eyes snap her out of the blinding rage she feels racing through her veins, her mind, her soul. She feels the woman tug a little tighter on her arm and she drops the piece of jagged glass. She watches it shatter into tiny pieces as it hits the ground and tears well up in her eyes. Tears she quickly magics away. "I'm sorry .. I .. " She puts her hand out to help Robin up but he bats it away.

"Don't be sorry, you're just protecting your Queen, is all."

Emma narrows her eyes, "What's he talking about?" She looks at Regina, then at Robin before her eyes stay locked back on the older woman. "Regina, what the hell is he talking about?"

"You didn't tell her? Well, what are you waiting for, m'lady." He chuckles as he brings himself slowly to his feet, gripping the back of his head.

"How .. how do you know about the book?" Regina asks him as she grips her mid section.

"Book? The book you were reading - "

"Will told me, Belle told him and he told me. Felt I had the right to know. I wish I could say you shared the same logic but - "

"Robin, you need to leave."

"Oh, I'm being dismissed?" He bows mockingly as amusement shines in his eyes. "As you wish, your Majesty."

"Don't call me that." Regina whispers softly at his retreating back as he walks down the steps to the foyer.

"That's right, my apologies, that title is reserved for your _Dark Knight_." He nods his head to Emma before slamming the door behind him.

"Dark Knight?" Emma walks toward Regina but she puts her hands up and takes a step back from the younger woman.

She stops immediately. "Are you afraid of me?"

Regina's eyes snap to Emma's. "Of course, not." She sees the alarm in Emma's eyes and quickly fills the space that is between them. She touches Emma's cheek, running soft fingertips under her chin, lifting it up, so their eyes can meet once more. She sees the flicker of sea green and sighs.

 _There you are._

Emma stares back into dark brown eyes and feels a warmth wash through her, like this woman is looking into her soul, and how is that possible? She clutches Regina's fingertips with her own and whispers, "Let me read the book."

Emma's demand snaps her back to the present and she clears her throat as she drops her fingers away.

~sqsqsqsq~

"So, I'm _Batman_. Damn, I'd prefer Spider Man, he's my favorite and I did absorb all that black goo which looked an awful lot like the same stuff from Dark Spidey." She sighs and looks up at the ceiling. "It could be worse I spose, I could be Superman and have to worry about getting bugs stuck in my teeth while flying but a _cape_? Really? Emma Swan, Caped Crusader of Darkness." She squints her nose up in disgust. "That sounds awful."

Regina is staring at Emma, mouth open and eyes wide.

"You do that a lot now, ya know? Just staring at me, it's creepy, cut it out." She crosses her arms in front of her chest and taps her foot lightly.

Regina shakes her head and spits out, "Emma, what the hell are you talking about?! What does _Batman_ or anything else you just rambled on about have _anything_ to do with _this_?!" She points at the book that Emma had placed down on the step after reading.

Emma places her hands on Regina's shoulders and rubs them a few times in a soothing up and down motion. "Shh, shh .. calm down, really, Regina, why so serious?" She pins Regina with an amused smile. "Get it? The infamous line from The Joker .. although I am partial to Jack's role in the original Batman .. but - "

"Miss Swan! Enough!" She pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs heavily.

"Look, I'm just trying to make light of this .. _nonsense_ , okay? Because, really, what else is there to do? Oh, we could have some shots and get really, _really_ drunk, laugh over this absurdity - "

"You think it's absurd?"

Emma hears the hurt in the older woman's voice and tilts her head slightly, "Um, yeah, don't you?"

And when Regina's eyes find the floor, Emma knows instantly that she doesn't. That in fact, Regina has taken this to heart and Emma moves in quickly, wrapping her arms around the older woman, drawing her in against herself.

Regina doesn't know how they are hugging. It all happens so fast, one moment she is staring at the ground, trying to calm her nerves and erratic heartbeat and then, Emma is holding her and whispering, "I'm sorry .. " into her ear.

Regina loses it on those two words. Tears fall, and she can't help but hide her face inside the warmth of Emma's neck as she wraps her own arms tightly around the younger woman. It's all too much. The book, missing Emma .. dealing with this new version of Emma .. Robin Hood .. Fate .. who does she love? All of it, is .. _too much_.

The sound of Regina crying, tears into Emma. She knows the sound of pain, of feeling lost and confused. _Alone_. All of these things and more are pouring out of Regina now and Emma can feel it, and it scares her.

The connection she feels with this woman seems to just be growing stronger and stronger, and the closer they are, it just .. it's too much.

She pulls herself quickly away and takes a few steps back, trying to bridge some distance from Regina but she knows in her heart, that an entire universe wouldn't even be enough to accomplish that task. This woman is her tether and always will be.

 _God, they're screwed._

"Regina, I - "

"Don't! If the next words out of your mouth resemble anything like an apology, save it." Dark brown eyes sparkle with tears before a swirl of blue smoke whisks her away.

Emma can only stand and watch as the magical colors of Regina disappear into the air and she sighs. She also lets the tears she had been holding back finally fall free as her fingertips brush along damp cheeks. She is grateful she can still cry, form tears. _Feel._

She lets the tears continue to fall as she waves her hand and the broken pieces of glass no longer litter the floor. She magically puts the mirror back together and places it back on the wall. _Seven years of bad luck be damned._

She sits down on the bottom step and picks up the book. She flips through and reads the passage again and when she gets to the end of the book she notices ripped edges running along the inseam.

 _The missing pages .. where are they?_

~sqsqsqsq~


	7. Chapter 7

**A.N.** _I listened to_ Red by Taylor Swift _for this chapter .._

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina puffs herself to her vault but quickly realizes not only does it remind her of time spent with Robin but also time spent with Emma. And she can't ignore the fact, that as she sits on the steps leading up and out of her vault, that the time spent with Emma over shadows the intimate moments with Robin.

She stands and walks to the mirror, closing her eyes briefly, and then she opens her eyes and stares at her reflection before flicking her wrist. When the smoke clears she is no longer in the silk robe from the morning, but dressed in a pair of black slacks and a buttoned up silk blouse.

She rolls her eyes when she realizes it's the same blouse Emma had borrowed once.

 _Enjoy my shirt, because that's all you're getting._ She shakes her head at the memory.

Her mind starts playing back other moments with Emma.

The first time they had met. _Hi._

Opening the door and Henry rushing past her as she gazes upon Emma standing on the walkway. _He seemed to have taken quite a shine to you._

Henry wasn't the only one though, who took a shine to Emma, she did as well. Emma made her feel again. She made the sleepy town and herself come to life.

 _What the hell are you doing?!_

 _Picking apples .._

 _Because sister, you have no idea what I am capable of._

And Regina didn't know .. she didn't know how Emma would be capable of breaking the curse, having access to magic, helping her mend the relationship with their son.

Their son.

 _He's MY SON!_

 _He's NOT, he's MINE!_

 _You will NOT keep my son from ME!_

They've come such a long way since then. _My gift to you .. is good memories. A good life .. for you and Henry._

She quickly wipes tears away she didn't realize had fallen. She glances around the dull room, truly seeing it for the first time. There is no color here. Just regret and sorrow stored away inside gray walls. Maybe it was fitting that her time spent with Robin happened here, where there is no true light or real warmth. As she sits on the steps and remembers the last four years of her life, all the key moments, have Emma in them. In one way or another .. _Emma and Henry_.

She never should have slept with Robin .. she doesn't love him.

Emma's bright eyes and beautiful face dance behind her shut eyes and when she steps out of her vault and looks up at the blue lined sky she knows what her heart has been whispering to her all along.

 _She loves Emma Swan._

~sqsqsqsq~

"You told Will? Why would you do that?" Regina clutches her stomach before continuing, "Do you have any idea the kind of morning I had because of your idiocy?"

"Regina .. I .. I had to tell someone, I just - "

"You just what? Couldn't wait to spill the newest gossip in this town?" Her eyes gleam with unshed tears. "I thought you were different, book worm."

Belle bites her bottom lip and looks down at the ground. "I'm sorry, Regina. Truly, I am."

The younger woman looks up and catches Regina's eyes. "Are you okay?"

"Am I okay? Of course, I'm not okay. How is any of this _okay_?"

"Regina - "

"She doesn't want to be turned back ... she .. all she keeps doing is asking me .. goading me for the damn dagger."

Belle tilts her head and watches as Regina paces around the room. She hears the fear and uncertainty in the woman's voice and something else, which sounds an awful lot like love, she thinks.

 _Oh boy._

"Regina, what about the book? Did you .. "

"I just want to burn that damn book!"

"Did Emma read it?"

"Oh, she read it alright, and laughed. She thinks she's god damn Batman! Or whatever."

Belle hears a trace of hurt and betrayal in the older woman's voice. "Oh, I see."

Regina pauses her pacing and turns to Belle. "You see _what_?"

Belle looks away before quickly stammering out, "You love her."

Regina's eyes widen and she takes a step back from the younger woman. Belle glances back and tries to soothe the embarrassed woman by quickly adding, "She loves you too, Regina."

She watches as the once regal woman scoffs and shakes her head. "She sacrificed herself for you, if that isn't love, well .. then what is?"

"She was trying to give me my happy ending with Robin, it wasn't - "

"It wasn't an act done by the Savior, Regina .. it was an act done out of love. Whether she knows it, is another matter." Belle shrugs and walks around to the other side of the counter.

Regina can only stare at the woman before she quietly murmurs, "I can't believe I am having this conversation with you."

"Why?" Belle turns back to her and squints her face in confusion.

The bell above the shop chimes a new arrival and both ladies turn to see Ruby entering the room.

Regina studies the woman's face and it doesn't take long for a smirk to arise on Ruby's features.

"Oh for goodness sake, does _everyone_ in this town, know?"

Ruby saunters up to the older woman and shrugs. "You're the one who created such a small town."

Regina whirls on Belle. "Who the hell else did you tell?"

"Oh, Belle didn't tell me, Robin is currently pouring his sorrow's out over some liquor at the diner and well .. me being the bartender and all, I heard quite an earful."

Regina sighs and looks up at the ceiling. "Why are you here?"

"To ask Belle, to get Will .. I think your .. well, whatever he is now, is going to need help with his hike back into the forest."

The three women stare at one another for a minute before Belle breaks the silence. "Right then, I'll call Will .. "

Belle gives Regina a reassuring nod before making her way through the curtain.

"So, the Dark Knight, huh? The Dark Knight and the Evil Queen - "

"It's just Queen, thank you."

Ruby chuckles and lifts her hands. "Oh - kay, if you say so."

Before she can reply a swirl of red and gray smoke fills the room and Emma appears around it.

Ruby takes in Emma's new appearance and smiles at her friend. "I like your hair, Em's. It suits you." She walks up to the other woman and touches her cheek. "And your skin is all sparkly." She grins.

"Yeah, it must be my new moisturizer." Emma shrugs and Ruby laughs at the joke.

Regina rolls her eyes at both of them and then notices the book, Emma is clutching against her chest. "Come to poke fun some more, Miss Swan. How did you even know where I was?"

"I didn't. I wanted to speak with Belle." She notices the hurt that washes through Regina's eyes and she quickly adds, "I wanted to find you too though, so hey, two birds, one stone, right?" Emma shrugs sheepishly and smiles at Regina.

Ruby watches the exchange and laughs softly. "Ya know, this _so_ explains a lot. And I'm not surprised, I mean the eye sex alone you two did - "

"Eye sex?" Both women ask at the same time as they look back at each other in confusion.

"Yeah, eye sex .. when two people stare at each other in a _really_ lustful way, they might as well be doing it. And Lord knows you two have - "

 _Regina make her stop talking._

 _Oh, I see you turned the thought thing back on, hmm._

 _Regina .. please._

 _What do you suggest I do, fireball her ass?_

 _That'll do._

Ruby studies the two women and exclaims, "See, like that!"

Regina and Emma break eye contact quickly and glare at Ruby while Belle enters the room again. She notices Emma's arrival and can feel the tension in waves. "So, what did I miss?"

Ruby waves her hand around between Regina and Emma. "Oh, nothing new, just the usual bickering .. eye sex .. banter .. and then some more eye sex."

"Eye sex?" Belle asks.

"Don't ask." Regina and Emma answer at the same time.

Ruby grins at Belle and winks. "I'll tell ya later."

"Miss Lucas .. please leave."

 _Hey, what's with the Miss Lucas. I thought the Miss was my thing._

Regina arches an eyebrow at her.

Emma shrugs and looks away. _Never mind._

 _Yes, exactly, get out of my mind, please._

She looks at Regina and shakes her head.

 _As you wish, your Majesty._ She bows a little and Regina narrows her eyes as she watches Emma straighten back up.

Belle clears her throat and glances at the book, Emma is holding.

Emma follows Belle's gaze and holds the book out a little toward the woman. "There are pages missing, Belle. Do you know anything about that?"

"What?" Regina steps forward and takes the book from Emma. She flips to the end and turns to the very last page. She studies the inseam and looks back at Emma. "How can you tell there are pages missing?"

Emma sighs. "Regina, the ripped edges, it's clear as - " Emma peers over her shoulder and sees a clean inseam. "day .. " She whispers softly as she touches the book, her fingertips brushing softly along Regina's hand.

Both women watch as the ripped edges of paper appear, lining inside the spine of the book. "Whoa." Emma let's go quickly and the ripped edges disappear once more.

Regina eyes the book and then stares at Emma's hand. "Your touch .. it - "

Ruby laughs and all three ladies look at her. "Oh boy, Emma has magical fingers. Lucky you, Regina."

"Miss Lucas, fair warning, I'm going to conjure a fireball in 5 .. 4 .. - "

"I'm leaving." Ruby walks backwards until her back hits the door handle. She quickly spins around and exits the shop as the little chime echo's around the room.

"So, the book, it's linked to Emma - "

"Well, look, book worm has brains." Regina glares at the woman but Belle notices the flush that is coloring her cheeks and knows not to take offense to the quip. She understands Regina's defenses are on high alert right now and she has to tread carefully.

"Belle, where did you even find the book?" Emma asks as she glances at Regina.

"It was locked up in a safe, Rumple has. Will helped me tumble the lock. I wasn't finding anything useful that was just out in the open so I figured try and look where Rumple had things stored away."

"And that's how Will knows about the book, because he was with you?"

"Yes, he was here when I was reading it and .. again, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have - "

"Belle, was he left alone with the book at any time?"

"No, Emma, I can assure you, he was not."

"Okay, that means one thing, Gold removed the pages, he had to of."

Regina crosses her arms in front of her and asks, "How can you be so sure?"

"Because of Henry. And the other infamous book. He removed the pages so you wouldn't find them and I suspect the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." She looks at Regina and grins. "No pun intended."

Regina ignores the remark and turns to Belle. "How is he doing? Rumple .. is he .. do you think he will awaken soon?"

Belle's eyes turn soft and sad as she sighs and looks away from the two women. She tries to keep her voice steady as she replies, "I have no idea."

Regina nods as her eyes find Emma's. "Then we wait, and when he awakes, we get answers."

"Or you can just give me the dagger and - "

Regina turns to Belle and throws up her hands, "See?!"

Emma and Belle watch as Regina disappears amid a cloud of smoke.

Belle glances at Emma as the younger woman's eyes gaze over the swirling blue. "Rumple didn't want to change back either, Emma. His reasons were power, he didn't want to let go of what he had become addicted to. What are yours?"

Emma snaps her eyes to Belle's. "My reasons aren't your concern."

"Fair enough, but they are Regina's. Go home Emma, and talk to her."

Emma's voice is laced in sadness as it quietly fills the room. "That's not my home." Smoke swirls around Emma as Belle watches the woman disappear.

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina finds herself at the harbor, staring out over the choppy water as the blue smoke evaporates. She flicks a wrist and her black coat appears, covering her. She glances behind her and takes in the two benches that are perched there. She sighs and sits down on the right one, the same one she had sat upon across from Emma, a few years ago.

 _How long did you think you could keep that from me?_

 _Well, I was going to tell you but I was kind of busy, trying to stop you and your mother from killing me and my entire family._

 _What is he doing here?_

 _Neil? Relax .. he just wants to spend a little time with his son._

Regina's thoughts are interrupted by a mist of red and gray smoke festering and then Emma is sitting next to her.

Neither woman speak for awhile, they both just listen to the sound of water lapping against the shore and watch as the occasional sea gull glides through the sky.

After awhile, Emma is the first to break the silence. "I am sorry for .. my reaction toward the book. I - "

Regina holds up her hand and Emma catches the older woman's eyes. "I thought it was absurd too, when I first read it, I thought it was .. _crazy_. I can't blame you for whatever reaction you had."

"And now?"

"Now what?"

"You believe in the prophecy?"

Regina glances away from Emma's penetrating gaze. She doesn't know if she's ready to answer, to talk about this just yet. She purses her lips and tightens the slim coat around herself.

 _You're stalling._

 _And that's cheating._

 _I'm the Dark One .. cheating surprises you?_

 _You surprise me._

Both women watch as the other licks her lips and their eyes slowly trail back up to one another's.

 _I want to .._

Regina touches her knee. _What do you want, Emma?_

 _I think I want to kiss you .._

 _You think or you know?_

 _I .. I know I want to kiss you but you're a woman, and I'm a .. woman._

 _Good observation, Swan._ Regina rolls her eyes.

 _I mean, I've never .. I know you have but -_

 _I have what?_

 _Been with a woman or women .. whatever._

 _How the hell do you know that? And for the record, I have not._

 _Well, okay, maybe not you you .. like Mayor you .. but the Queen you, hell yeah!_

Regina stares at Emma.

 _You're doing the staring thing again, knock it off._

 _Emma, how .. why .. what makes you think that version of me was with the .. fairer sex?_

 _Um .. because you basically came on to me within the first three minutes of meeting me, that's why._

 _What?! I never met .. oh, when you and Captain Sea eel went back and -_

 _Yes, and I believe the exact words you said to me were, and I quote, 'I suspect your night has just begun' and then you had me whisked away to your dungeon._

Regina gently sweeps her knuckles down a smooth cheek. _Oh, dear Emma, if I was coming on to you, it wouldn't have been my dungeon you were whisked away to._

Dark brown eyes take over Emma's and it makes the younger woman grow warm in new places. Regina leans in and whispers against the shell of her ear, "Now, you're the one who is staring, dear."

~sqsqsqsq~


	8. Chapter 8

~sqsqsqsq~

"Oh, am I interrupting?" Hook bows a bit before standing upright again. "My apologies. First date?" His eyes narrow as they take in Regina's hand on Emma's knee and the other as it cups her chin.

She sighs and brushes her thumb softly along Emma's chin before slipping her hand away.

 _His timing is awful, huh?_

 _Stop the thought thing Emma._

 _Why?_

Regina pins her with a glare.

 _Fine. Whatever._

She shrugs and looks up at Hook. "What's up?"

Hook tilts his head and sighs heavily at her. "What's up? That's what you have to say to me?"

"Um .. yeah? It's a form of greeting, what's the problem here?" She looks at Regina for an answer and Hook catches the dismissal.

"The problem, Swan is .. you told me you loved me .. remember - "

"Hold on a second." Emma puts up her hand at the misguided Pirate and looks back at Regina.

 _You call me Swan .. he calls me Swan. I just .. realized that._

 _Emma .. stop the thou -_

 _No, hold on .. he was calling me it first .. right? Yeah, he was and then you started .. at some point, why?_

 _Emma .. I -_

"Are you two doing the reading mind _thing_? Why don't you two just kiss and get this whole thing over with?"

"Kiss?!" Emma looks at Hook and her eyes widen.

"Yeah, lass it doesn't really take a genius to figure - "

"Clearly, if _you_ figured it out." Regina quips.

He takes a step forward and sneers at the regal poised woman. "You know what, Regina? I've had about enough of you and - " He moves closer to the older woman and it's enough of a threat to have Emma immediately stand and put herself between the two.

"Back off, Covergirl. Go be Easy and Breezy somewhere else."

Regina can't help but giggle. The remark ran so smoothly past Emma's lips, and watching Hook's face, his eyes widening at the insult, is just too much for her.

Emma hears the giggling and turns quickly to Regina.

 _Are you .. giggling? Seriously? I made you .. giggle._

 _Don't gloat, dear, it's unbecoming._

Regina regains her composure and stands up, placing her hand along the small of Emma's back as she moves around the younger woman.

"You told me you loved me, Emma. So, whatever this is - " He waves his hand between the two women, "It's not real. It's all .. the darkness has muddled you and _she_ is taking advantage of that."

"Oh, I tell all the boys I love them .. it's what I do, when a portal is about to suck them or me away." Emma shrugs and looks up at the sky and takes a deep breath before continuing, "It appears to be my trademark." She looks the pirate up and down and shrugs again. "And it appears to be overrated."

"So, you and .. _her_ .. "

"Regina .. I have a name, Sea eel."

"As do I, your Majesty, so I suggest you start using it."

"Or what?" Emma takes a step forward and her face is inches from Hook's as her eyes narrow and turn to black.

Hook gulps a little before swallowing and shaking his head. "I'm not afraid of you, Swan."

"You should be."

"You love me."

"I don't."

"You love her, then? Because of a book? How is that any different from pixie dust and lion tattoo's?"

And there it is, Emma thinks. Hook has learned about the infamous book, another man with a bruised ego. _Just great_. She sighs and replies briefly, "It's not."

Regina and Hook both look at Emma and the younger woman winks at Regina before she continues, "Regina looks better in leather, Hook .. and it kind of just goes from there."

Regina can't help but blush as she watches Emma's eyes soften back to a swirl of golden sea green as they rake over her.

 _I made you giggle and blush .. victory is mine._

 _You are a child._

 _And you're still blushing._

 _I thought I told you to stop the thought thing. You never listen to me._

Emma inches closer to her and gently cups Regina's face as her eyes lighten to a brighter sea green for a moment before the golden hue shades them.

 _Oh, I listen to you .. I listen to your heart, and to all the exotic beats it chimes. I listen to your breath and to all the contrasting exhales you take. I listen to your mind and to all the varying layers of insight it brings. And I especially listen to your voice and to all the sweet melodies it sings. I listen to you, Regina._

Emma wants to kiss this woman, who is standing in front of her with brown eyes that look so deeply into her own. She wants to kiss her lips, every part of her flesh that is available to her fingertips as she makes Regina moan her name. Emma realizes she wants that most of all. To hear _her_ name gasping from Regina's delightful lips. That probably taste like apples, she thinks. Definitely cinnamon apples.

And what Emma realizes most of all as she gently drops her hands away from Regina is she loves this woman. With every now dark fiber of her being, she loves her. And she thinks she has all along. From that very first .. _Hi._

Hook clears his throat and it brings Emma out from her thoughts as she finally shifts her gaze from dark brown eyes and onto his.

"I imagine you can swim?"

Hook squints his face in confusion before responding with a questioning, "Of course, why - "

"Good." Emma swirls her wrist and Hook is flung up and over the edge of the dock, into the bitter cold harbor. "After all, it would be awful if you drowned."

She turns back to Regina and grins sheepishly at her. "You should go see Henry. He's probably pacing up the walls by now with worry and pent up operation whatever he is going to call this new seemed mission."

She sees the worry appear in Regina's eyes and she squeezes her hand before summoning the cloud of smoke that will whisk her away. "We'll talk later. Go see our son."

~sqsqsqsq~

"Is Emma okay? Did you convince her to kiss Hook? Is she .. does she still want to leave? Still wants the dagger? Regina?"

She is met by a barrage of questions and sad eyes from Charming and Snow as she enters their home. She can't decide which one she should answer first before Henry is barreling down the stairs and into her arms.

She holds him tight against her as she smooths his hair and then the back of his neck before pulling away and kissing his forehead. "I love you, Henry."

"I love you too." He wraps her in another hug and she smiles against him. He is getting so tall, she thinks. It seems like just yesterday he was wrapped in a baby blanket and cradled in her arms.

He pulls away first this time and grins at her. "Okay, so I have a name picked out and everything, Operation Savior Swan. Because I think .. " Henry looks over Regina's shoulder at Snow and Charming who are both looking on and listening intently. He grabs his mom's hand and pulls her up the stairs toward Emma's bedroom.

Once they reach the top, he lets go and begins pacing around the small room. Regina can't help but shake her head at their son because Emma was so right about him pacing up the walls.

"You might want to sit down for this, Mom." He nods at the bed and taps his foot, waiting a bit impatiently for his mother to comply.

She puts her hands up and sits down on the edge of the bed. "By all means, I'm listening."

Henry takes a deep breath before he begins, "Okay, I think .. well, I think .. " Regina notices the light blush peppering his features and she tilts her head to the side and narrows her eyes a bit. Alarm and trepidation rush to the forefront of her mind.

She slowly says, "Henry, what do you think?"

His eyes find the floor for a beat before they finally inch up to meet her own. "Well .. I think .. it should be called Operation Savior Swan because I think .. you're supposed to save Emma .. you're the light that will guide the Swan back to safety, back to the shore. Back to me and back to .. well .. you."

Henry's eyes find the wooden grain in the floor again and he waits. For what he's not sure .. laughter? Sarcasm? Inferior attitude? Gosh, any kind of attitude? There is just silence though, silence and the steady rhythm of a clock ticking by the side of Emma's bed. He steals a glance at his mom and their eyes meet briefly before Regina glances away, looking past him.

"Henry, I .. I need to lie down. I am .. exhausted. We will .. I promise we will talk about the name and everything it - "

"Suggests?"

"Yes .. well .. if that's the word you want to use then so be it. I just need to rest for a spell .. um bit."

Henry tilts his head at his mom, never in his life has he heard the word, "um" uttered from his mother's mouth. He can't believe it as his eyes widen a bit and he realizes she just sounded an awful lot like Emma. And then his mother does something he will never forget, something he will remember and think back on even when he is older and a grown man with a family of his own. He watches as his mother stands up and goes to the top of Emma's bed. He watches her kick off her heels and proceed to lay down on top of the soft feather down comforter as she buries her face into the pillow and then grabs the other pillow and puts that one under her head instead.

He realizes she had first laid down on the pillow he uses and she replaced it with the pillow that Emma sleeps on. He can only stand there, speechless as he watches this, his feet seem to be stuck to the floor and his brain is stuck as well. Like a thousand pieces of gum are all chewed up around his mind. A gross analogy he thinks, even for him but still, that's what it feels like as Regina's voice breaks into his thoughts.

"Henry, can you grab me Emma's jacket, please, I'm a bit cold and shut the drapes, please."

He realizes his Mom actually asked him to move and somehow his feet and brain catch up with each other. How, he has no idea as he grabs the red leather jacket from the back of the desk chair and covers his mom before he quickly closes the drapes and leaves the makeshift bedroom. A quiet, "Have a good sleep, mom .. " rushes past his lips as he finds the stairs.

He doesn't want to harp on the last thing he sees as his peripheral vision takes in his mom breathing in Emma's scent from the jacket before she closes her eyes and whispers back, "We'll talk when I awake, Henry."

~sqsqsqsq~

"Where's your mother?"

Henry rubs the back of his neck and glances back up toward the bedroom before he squeezes Snow's arm and gently guides her away from the bottom of the stairwell. He quietly says, "She's taking a nap."

"She's taking a NAP?!" Snow exclaims as her eyes widen into saucers.

"I'm sorry, she's WHAT?!" David yells as he crosses his arms in front of his chest.

Henry rolls his eyes, a feature he gets all from Regina and pins them both with a glare his mother would be proud of. "Sshh! She's exhausted, okay?"

"Oh, she's exhausted? Well, I'm sorry, by all means let the queen get her damn beauty rest while our daughter is - "

"Right here. And fine, thank you."

They all swing around to see Emma standing in the doorway.

"I was gonna knock but the door was already open. So, *knock knock*." Emma raises her hand and makes the knocking motion before grinning at them all. "Come on kid, I'd figure you'd at least say, who's there?" She watches their confused faces and then throws her hands up, "Ya know, like a knock knock joke. I wonder how those knock knock jokes even started? I should google that."

"Ma?"

Their eyes meet and Emma smiles at her kid. "Yeah, kid, it's me and I'm here."

He quickly runs to her and wraps his arms around her. She hugs him back, running fingers lightly through his hair before kissing the crown of his head. "I'm sorry about not letting you see me, yesterday. It kind of doesn't feel like it was just yesterday, I was summoned back here though, does it? But yeah, sorry about last night, and magicking you inside the house."

"It's okay .. I forgive you."

"Where's your mom?"

She's upstairs, um .. taking a nap."

"She is? Huh .. okay, sounds like a good idea .. I'm gonna go join her on that nap quest." Emma ruffles his hair a bit and smiles. "When I wake up, a much over due hot cup of cocoa with cinnamon is in order to share, okay?"

His smile brightens the room as he beams, "Okay." For a minute he looks like a ten year old again, smiling up at her as they walk down a sidewalk together and Emma can't help but miss those days. A slight sting hits her heart before she smiles back at him.

She glances at her parents and says, "Try not to bore my son, okay?"

Snow and Charming look at each other as hurt washes through their eyes.

"Henry, what the hell is going on here?" They both hiss at the boy.

He watches as his mom makes her way up the stairs that lead to his other mom and a single bed. "I think it's Operation Savior Swan starting without a hitch, that's whats going on." He shrugs sheepishly as his eyes find his grandparents and both adults can't help but notice the merriment that is bouncing around in his gaze.

They look at each other before both asking, "What the hell does _that_ mean?"

~sqsqsqsq~

She can still hear the mumbled murmurings of Henry and her parents as her eyes fall to a sleeping Regina. She gently moves the jacket off of her and replaces it with a blanket she pulls from the closet shelf.

She has to resist the urge to lean down and kiss her forehead before she moves to the other side of the bed and climbs in. She doesn't let herself think about just how domestic this feels, sharing a bed with the other woman as she listens to Regina's light breathing. She doesn't think about the warmth that is radiating around her just by being this close to the raven haired sleeping beauty. She does allow herself to cherish the thought, that she could get used to this as her eyes slowly shut and she follows Regina into dreamland.

~sqsqsqsq~


	9. Chapter 9

**A.N.** _I listened to_ Flowers for a Ghost by Thriving Ivory _for this chapter ..._

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina's dreams are restless. Images of herself, dressed as the Evil Queen play out behind shut eyes, as hearts are crushed to dust. Her brown eyes dance with glee as she laughs and laughs while other's drop to their death by her feet. Time skips her backward, and she is just Regina again, cradling her beloved, Daniel as her mother stands above them. Her lips brush over his, over and over but his eyes never open. He is gone.

Time moves her forward now, and Rumple is standing in Cora's place, looking down as she cradles Emma in her arms. Trees surround them, instead of a stable and Rumple is talking but she can not hear him over her cries.

 _Please not again .. not Emma. No .. no .. No!_

Her cries wake Emma from sleep and she sits up in alarm, staring at the restless dreaming woman. Should she try and wake her? Emma can't remember if you're supposed to wake someone from a nightmare or let them be.

 _Damn it._

She hears her own name being said, over and over followed by the word no and she quickly places a hand on Regina's forehead. A white light flashes behind Emma's closed eyes and then what Regina is dreaming plays out like a movie inside her own mind. Another trick Emma can do as the super ubered Dark One. She wonders just how powerful she really is, when another image flashes inside her mind and she snaps her hand away. She feels a shiver run up and then back down her spine and the saying, someone has just walked over her grave, rings true inside of her. She wishes she can erase what she has seen, for Henry's sake, her parent's and as her eyes fall to the searing brunette, she can only hope Regina doesn't remember anything upon awakening.

~sqsqsqsq~

"That is absurd, Henry .. what about Hook?"

"What about him?" Henry shakes his head and taps his chin, contemplating how to continue this conversation with his grandparents, of all people.

"Emma and .. _Regina_? Like me and Charming?" Snow can barely get the question out of her mouth before she begins to laugh. David glances at the boy and then at his wife and it seems her giggling is contagious because he can't help but laugh as well.

Henry sighs and glances up at the ceiling, wishing he had his two mom's here but at the same time grateful they aren't sitting here, witnessing this debacle.

"Guys? Can we be serious here, please? I'm not .. this isn't a joke. Okay?"

"Oh, Charming .. Henry .. isn't .. joking .. " Snow's laughter grows and she has to grip her sides as she tries to catch a breath.

David wipes his eyes as a deep laugh rumbles from his chest. "I .. know .. "

"Fine, laugh it up. But you'll see .. everyone will see soon enough." The boy crosses his arms over his chest and glares at his grandparents.

That simple statement seems to do the trick as Snow and Charming immediately stop laughing and glare back at Henry. "What do you mean _everyone_ will see soon enough?"

"Oh, now I have your attention?" He rolls his eyes.

"You're just like your mother." David mumbles as he grabs Snow's hand and holds it tight.

"Henry, explain, please." Snow's voice sounds rich like royalty and Henry can't help but be impressed.

"Okay .. well .. I .. I felt something when I picked up the quill .. when we were trapped inside the book. Before that, I was on the Robin Hood is mom's soul mate bandwagon too .. yay for pixie dust and lion tattoo's." Henry shrugs and then continues, "But when I touched the quill, I saw .. I saw something .. briefly."

Snow and Charming wait with bated breath for Henry to continue but the boy just stares at them. Tongue tied. They steal a glance at each other before David nods softly at Henry while Snow asks, "What did you see?"

"The future."

~sqsqsqsq~

Emma quickly wipes a tear away that has fallen past Regina's shut eyes. She wants to calm her, to take this nightmare away but how? And then an idea pops into her head, if she can see images Regina is having, can Regina see hers? It's worth a shot, Emma thinks as she quickly lays down and places Regina's palm along her forehead. She closes her eyes and recalls memories of Henry, Regina had given her a year ago.

One of Emma's favorite moments prances along her mind, and she can feel a warmth tingling between them.

 _Magic._

Regina's nightmare fades away slowly as Henry's three year old face comes into view. He is dressed in a puffy gray winter coat, with the red and gray scarf wrapped a few times around his neck. A orange hat, his favorite color, is placed warmly on the top of his head and his cheeks are a rosy red. Puffs of smoke escape from his lips as he yells the word, "Snow!" to a laughing Emma.

He sticks his tongue out and tries to catch a falling snow flake while giggling.

Emma opens her eyes to see a warm smile gracing Regina's lips and both women think the same name together.

 _Henry._

~sqsqsqsq~

"The future? And it had your two moms .. together?" Snow asks.

"Like together .. _together_?" David adds while his eyes crinkle in confusion.

Henry sighs before running a hand through his hair. He knows his grandparents want answers but he's not sure he should actually say out loud what he saw. He doesn't want to jinx anything, like telling someone a wish you made, it might not come true then. He sighs again and his eyes meet his grandparents once more.

"I don't think I should share what I saw .. but yes, my Mom's were definitely in love and - "

"In _love_? I'm .. I'm sorry, Henry, I'm having a hard time following all of this."

"Me too." David nods his head in agreement and squeezes his wife's hand.

Henry taps his forehead as if that act alone will help in explaining this somehow. He thinks for a moment and then grins sheepishly. "Okay .. like how you two found each other, right? Well, Mom and Ma found each other too .. like, don't you think it's odd that the dark curse lasted 28 years? Why 28 years? And that time stopped even? Having time stop is pretty powerful stuff .. and yet, time kept moving where Ma was, so she could grow and become an adult .. closer to Mom's own age. Well, her time stopped age. Are you two getting this at all?"

Snow and Charming can only stare at the boy as he continues, "And they are always saving each other, rescuing one another, like you two have."

"Henry, your mom's didn't get along when they first met and - "

"You guys didn't either." Henry presses.

"Emma took a chainsaw to your mother's apple tree."

"And you set a trap for Grandma outside her hideout."

"Because she had stolen my mother's ring."

"And Mom had Emma falsely arrested." Henry sits back in his chair and crosses his arms.

Snow and Charming look at each other and do the same, mirroring the boy as they both sit back in their respective chairs, arms folded in front of them as they stare their grandson down in a stalemate.

"This is .. ridiculous."

"Maybe not David."

"Snow, you can't - "

"Emma pushed Regina out of the way."

"What?"

"From the wraith, that's how she was even by the portal .. she pushed her out of the way and .. oh dear lord."

"What now?" David sighs heavily.

Snow drops her head into her hands and her shoulders begin to shake up and down.

Henry feels awful that his grandma is crying and is about to stand up and try to console her when he hears laughter filling the room. Snow's laughter.

"Charming, we are idiots."

Henry nods to himself before saying, "Well, my Mom does call you the two - " Snow and David arch their eyebrows at him and Henry quickly shakes his head before mumbling, "Never mind."

Snow looks back at her husband and wipes tears away from under her eyes. "Emma helped Regina open that portal, and then down in the mine, they combined their magic and stopped the trigger. Something that was designed to be unstoppable. Oh my goodness, David, True Love is magic. The most powerful magic there is."

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina opens her eyes to see Emma Swan laying next to her, asleep. She also realizes fairly quickly, Emma is holding her hand. She feels that familiar warmth rush through her as Emma's skin caresses her own. She sighs softly to herself as the dream of little Henry dances in her mind. She remembers that day like it was just yesterday. Henry experiencing Winter for the first time, laughing and playing amid the snowflakes. She squeezes Emma's hand before reluctantly letting it go. She sits up and another flash races through her mind. This time what she sees isn't her young son but Emma and .. _No!_

She quickly sits back against the pillow and shuts her eyes, wanting the daunting nightmare to stop.

 _Just stop. Please._

She glances at Emma and things start to fall into place for her and the fear she just felt instantly turns toward anger. She flings the blanket off of a sleeping Emma and magics her jeans away, replacing them with a pair of shorts instead.

Emma opens her eyes, trying to focus them after finally being able to rest comfortably. She feels the comforter rubbing along her now bare legs and looks down in surprise and then back up to a furious looking Regina.

"You know, if you wanted me undressed, all you had to do was ask .. I feel oddly violated here, Regina."

"Turn the thought thing on .. "

"What? Now you want the - "

"Emma Swan .. now!"

 _What the hell Regina?!_

 _Explain the bruises._ She brushes her fingertips over a shin. _This is new, Emma!_

 _And how do you know that?_ Emma follows her gaze down to her leg.

 _Because it's darker than these._ She runs her hand up along a smooth leg until she is touching Emma's thigh, her knuckles grazing the hem of her shorts.

 _How could you not tell me .. why -_

 _Can we please not do this, okay? Just -_

 _Let me guess, just give you the dagger? At least now I know why you want the damn thing so much!_

"Jesus Christ Emma!"

"Hey, that's my line. You tag line thief. Wait, am I turning the thought thing off? You wanna yell at me with our outside voices now?"

"Stop joking. Stop being _you_ for one second and be - "

"What? Her? The Savior?"

"Emma, just my Emma .. " Regina says it so softly and there it is, the biggest slip up of all time. The two words lay heavy in the air and they hold so much weight between the two women. More weight than _maybe I need you_ .. more than, _trust me_ .. more than w _elcome back_ because the two words Regina has just spoken imply so much more. Both women can only sit on the bed and stare at one another as Regina's hand lightly rests along Emma's thigh. _My Emma_ still ringing in both their ears as they think the same thought.

 _Love._

"Well, that's just great .. your Emma? Seriously - "

"Emma - "

"No, just no! I sacrifice myself so you can be happy basically .. with _Robin_ and yet here we are, somehow in god damn bed together and - "

"Well, that was your choice to join me - "

"There is no choice, Regina .. can't you see that?"

"No choice? With us?"

Emma laughs. She laughs and shakes her head in bewilderment. "The fact that you are now sitting here, saying _with us_ .. just proves my point."

"Well dear, would you care to share this _point_ because I for one am - "

"Lost? Yeah, join the club."

~sqsqsqsq~

"Lost? And you think - "

"Yes, Emma is lost right now and I think Mom is our only hope in bringing her back .. to helping the Swan find her way back to shore, if I put it metaphorically, hence Operation Savior Swan." Henry sighs as he looks at his grandparents.

Snow glances at David and shakes her head. "Regina is our only hope .. " She stands and begins to pace around the room.

Henry and David watch the woman for a minute before David finally speaks. "What are you thinking?"

She stops her movement and leans against the kitchen counter, finally bringing her eyes to meet her husbands. "Rumple said the same thing .. inside the dungeon .. Emma was our only hope to breaking the curse, and then the .. " She closes her eyes, bringing herself back to that time traveled so long ago, and replays the words, trying to remember exactly and when she does her eyes snap open in alarm and she looks at Henry and then David. "And then the final battle will begin."

~sqsqsqsq~

"It's like I have this battle raging inside of me and you have no idea what this feels like." Emma pushes Regina's hand off of her thigh and she magics her jeans back on.

"Don't even think about puffing away, Swan." She glares at Emma with those dark brown eyes and Emma feels her heart begin to flutter.

"I don't want to talk, Regina."

"That's fine, you don't have to talk, you just have to listen."

Emma glances away from the woman, her eyes scanning the room, trying to figure a way out from this conversation, when she feels Regina's fingers tangle with her own. Her eyes peer back up to find Regina's and she sighs softly. Regina's touch, is soft and endearing. It makes her heart race and then calm down to a steady rhythm in the blink of an eye.

 _Fine but talk in thoughts._

 _Ah, because you think I won't and you have a way out then._

Emma narrows her eyes. _Maybe._

 _Tough luck, thoughts are fine with me. If it means you stay and no puffing away?_

Emma sighs before nodding her head. _Deal._

 _Good._ Regina squeezes Emma's hand before she continues, _I know all about having battles raging inside Emma. I might not have the darkness in me like you do but I did wrestle with my own demons. You know I was the evil queen but before that I was just a young girl in love and -_

 _It put you in a very dark place after losing Daniel._

 _Yes .. the darkest. Emma, I killed my own father to enact the curse. I took his heart. And while being tied to Pan's tree, I realized I can't even regret it, because all of it brought me to Henry._

Emma looks away and Regina cups her chin, drawing her gaze back to her own. _And to you. Or maybe it brought you to me._

The air around them becomes thick with desire and love as it fills the unseen molecules up between them.

 _You can't kiss me. I can't .. kiss you._

 _Let me save you Emma .. please._

 _You won't be though._

 _How so?_

 _Because kissing me .. might work._ Emma shrugs against Regina's penetrating glare. _We don't know one hundred percent if it would be true love's kiss .. but and stop looking at me like that, you know I am right -_

 _So then what's the harm in trying -_

 _Because there is a chance it will work and then you free me, the darkness gets unleashed again and then what? It goes to you .. or my mom .. it's gonna go to someone with a somewhat darkened heart. What about Henry?_

 _Henry isn't dark._

 _Of course not but he swapped bodies with Pan, what if that draws the darkness to him for some reason .. and he .. he snapped the quill. He snapped Fate and he might have a very pissed off Universe to answer to for that._ _Regina, the darkness has to stay where it is, and you have to .. you have to .._

 _Let you die? No. Never._ She shakes her head swiftly, brown eyes filling with stubborn determination.

 _You remember the dream, Regina. It has to be this way. You need to give me the dagger and let me go -_

 _I'm supposed to let you go scampering off like some wounded animal into the woods .. to die?_

Regina cups Emma's face and brings her lips inches from her own. _I kiss you now, and true love works, the darkness leaves you and it will come to me, I'm here, sitting right next to you. Or we put Snow and Henry in my vault before we kiss, I don't care, Emma .. but we do kiss, and let the darkness have me -_

 _Kill you?! No!_

 _It might not kill me .. I was already dark .. I don't have -_

 _Yes you do, you have light magic, you used it to best Zelena._

She pulls Regina's hands from her face, gripping them in her own and smiles at the older woman. _But nice try, Madame Mayor._

Regina leans forward and brushes her forehead along Emma's. _I miss those days._

 _Me too._

~sqsqsqsq~


	10. Chapter 10

**A.N.** _I listened to_ I Shall Believe by Sheryl Crow _for this chapter .._

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina pulls away and threads her fingers through Emma's before her eyes get captured by the allure of golden sea green again. She sighs softly and tightens her hold on Emma's hand. "Were you ever going to tell me?"

Emma looks away, quickly tilting her head to the side but Regina cups her chin and she's gently guided to focus on Regina once more. "You wont like the answer."

"How can you keep this from me?" Her eyes darken and Emma knows there is a storm of emotions swirling inside of her. Regina's face and eyes always tell her more than words ever could. She sighs and pulls Regina's hand up to her lips and quickly places a kiss along the inside of her wrist. She watches as the older woman's eyes flick to a lighter shade before darkening again. And this time Emma knows the darkened color is stemmed from passion, not anger. Emma definitely prefers being on the receiving end of _that_ look.

"You're distracting me with .. with .. "

Emma turns her hand over and brushes her lips along the soft padding of Regina's palm. "Hmm .. _with_?" She listens as Regina takes a breath and then watches as brown eyes dilate.

"I thought you said no kissing?"

"On the lips .. but the flesh .. " Emma shrugs before pulling Regina close and inhaling her sweet scent while kissing the inner curve of her neck. She brings her lips up to Regina's ear and whispers, "The _flesh_ is fair game."

Regina's heart beats fast and butterflies begin to flutter around inside her stomach, starting an enchanting chaos that she feels all the way down to the tips of her toes. Emma continues to kiss her, to nibble at her pulse point.

"You kissed Henry on the forehead and the curse broke - "

"Yes, because it was true love for our child but a kiss born out of true love between _us_ .. has to happen _here_." Emma gently taps Regina's lips with a fingertip.

"And you know this how?"

"I honestly don't know how I know exactly .. I just do." She shrugs again and taps her forehead, smiling at the woman sitting before her. "Some random things .. knowledge is just in here now, floating around." Emma laughs quietly before she finds herself being pushed back against the headboard as Regina sits on her lap.

Kisses soft as rose petals are placed along her forehead, then cheeks, two more get brushed along the corners of her mouth before a trail of them dip along her jawline.

 _No lips Regina. Promise me._

Regina sighs and nods her head before her lips find Emma's rapid pulse point.

 _That's not an answer, Madame Mayor._

 _Take what you get, Miss Swan. And I'm still mad at you but -_

She wraps her arms around Regina, sliding her hands quickly down her back before cupping her ass, drawing Regina flush against her. Their chests touch and Emma wants nothing more than to magic them naked as she feels Regina shudder in her arms and watches the older woman bite her lower lip, dark eyes dilating once more and oh yeah, Emma is a goner. She slides a hand between them and begins to unbutton Regina's silk blouse.

 _I do love this shirt, I know first hand just how soft it is .. soft like you and your kisses. Hmm .. like rose petals._

 _Rose petals? Why Miss Swan, are you trying to woo me?_

Emma kisses her neck, before she sweeps a light path down the woman's newly exposed flesh, stopping to dip a tongue inside the sweet valley of Regina's cleavage before giving the woman a kiss there.

 _Maybe. Is it working?_

Regina cups Emma's face, bringing her to eye level again as she slides the pad of her thumb gently across one cheek. _Yes._

They stare at each other for a moment and Regina can't help but sigh in content as she catches glints of trusted sea green flashing like lightning bugs inside golden caramel.

 _What are we going to do, Emma?_

 _I have no idea._

~sqsqsqsq~

"So what do we do now?" David asks.

"I have no idea .. I think, it's between them." Henry nods to the stairs and looks back at his grandparents.

Snow and David exchange a look before Snow moves around the counter and sits back down in her seat. "The final battle .. do you think this is it? This is what Rumple meant .. what he saw?"

David rubs his face hard before slamming his fists down onto the table. "Why does everything have to be so .. so .. "

"Doom and gloom?" Henry asks.

"Poetic?" Snow wonders.

David narrows his eyes at his wife before saying, "I'm gonna lean more on Henry's take, doom and gloom it is."

"Well, I think it's beautifully poetic .. The Queen and the Savior - "

"Um .. yeah sure, kind of still trying to wrap my brain around the fact it's Regina and our daughter, Snow."

Henry covers his mouth to stifle a giggle because his grandparents can be so funny at times. And this is definitely _one_ of those times.

"Well, yes, but I mean .. all of this has led us to _here_." Snow leans back in her chair and sighs, "I mean, who would have thought?"

David leans his elbows on the table, resting his chin along closed fists before mumbling, "Not me, that's for sure."

And all Henry can do is smile as he steals a glance back toward the stairs.

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina brings her lips to Emma's forehead and kisses her there as she closes her eyes. She wishes this kiss was enough to save Emma. She wishes Emma was wrong. But she isn't wrong. Kisses placed on foreheads are just that. Kisses. No magic. No curse breaking. Just a gentle motion felt along Emma's skin like calm waves lapping at a shoreline. Regina sighs and buries her face inside the security of Emma's neck. They find themselves hugging for the second time in one day and then Emma realizes Regina is letting her hold her as she cries softly in Emma's arms.

Regina doesn't want to cry especially not in front of Emma .. not now. She just can't help it, the tears fall and she has no control to stop them. She feels strong arms pull her in even closer and a steady warmth envelops her. Emma might be dark now but she is still so _warm_ along Regina.

Emma doesn't say, _it's going to be okay_ .. or _please don't cry_ .. Emma doesn't say anything. She wants to but she knows it won't help. All she can do is hold the woman she has come to love and she wishes she could fix it. Fix it all. And then Emma has a thought and it is born out of desperation and love for Regina. Because she really doesn't like to hear Regina cry. At all.

"Hey, what if .. what if there's a way to give you new memories .. or I don't know, make you forget about this .. the book .. me."

And Emma knows she should have stuck with just saying, 'it's going to be okay' or something cliche like that because in a second she feels Regina tense in her arms and pull back, releasing their hold, their connection.

When Emma's eyes find Regina's they are .. different. Not dark. But not Regina's. If that makes any sense, which it doesn't, Emma thinks. But still, Regina's eyes are different yet somehow familiar, like she has seen that certain gleam in them before, and then it hits Emma like an anvil falling out of the sky, right onto her head.

At Granny's Diner, the night Robin was reunited with his long lost wife, Marian. The way Regina had looked at her. _You .. you did this._

Emma's eyes continue to search Regina's and yes, it is definitely the same look as _then_.

 _Damn._ Yeah, she should have stuck with, 'please don't cry'.

Emma thinks it's a good sign she is still sitting on her lap though. She didn't puff away or jump off of her, so that is a plus, it's got to be.

 _Wrong. Oh so wrong._

"You truly are an idiot, Swan. A complete idiot." The slap is quick and the stinging from it races across her cheek like sandpaper.

The swirl of blue smoke clouds her vision and when she can see again, Regina is gone.

She watches the last of the smoke scatter and she buries her face in her hands. _Yeah, it's more like the Queen and the Idiot._

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina finds herself standing outside the pawn shop and as she enters the building and hears the bell chime against the slamming door, she can't help but feel this has been the longest day ever. She wants nothing more than to crawl into her bed and sleep and she realizes quickly that just isn't her. At all. Regina has never wanted to crawl and hide ever. She feels drained though. A certain tiredness she has never felt before and she has an uneasy feeling that she knows what it means, why she is indeed feeling this way.

She realizes Belle is staring at her as her eyes begin to focus on the woman standing behind the counter.

"You're .. you're connected to Emma, Regina .. it's .. I was just about to call you. He's - "

"Awake and well .. no doubt to our trusty Savior, I'd imagine. Remind me to send Miss Swan a thank you note." Rumple makes his way completely out from behind the curtain and wobbles a little despite the support of his cane. He leans against the counter top and Belle steals a glance at Regina.

"You bastard! You knew about all of this, didn't you?! Every damn thing .. you planned it, you - "

"Enough! You know nothing. I knew nothing - "

"Like hell you didn't! You are going to fix this Gold, do you hear me? You are going to - "

Rumple laughs and shakes his head, pointing a finger at the irate woman standing before him. "You don't tell _me_ what to do."

Belle comes around the counter and stands between the two of them, allowing some much needed interference because one look at Regina's face tells her everything she needs to know. Regina is on the verge of throttling her husband or conjuring a fireball .. something .. anything that will inflict bodily harm and she just can't stomach any of this turmoil any longer.

She puts her hands up and tries to reason with them both.

"Look, we need to stop all of this arguing and start just talking .. okay? If we all just work together we can - "

Rumple's face softens at the sound of his wife's voice and he frowns at her. "Belle, I told you .. it's not possible - "

"What did you tell her? What's not possible? Rumple, I swear on all the hearts I have crushed you better start filling me in on what you do _know_ .. now!"

He narrows his eyes at her but Belle's voice breaks in before he has a chance to reply. "Rumple, please, for once just do the right thing." His eyes find Belle's and the weight of those words freezes him to his spot.

Regina scoffs and turns around heading for the door as she says over a shoulder, "Please, we'll both die from old age before that man ever does the _right_ thing, Belle. This is a waste of my time."

"She's dying Regina."

Those three words stop her cold as the confirmation she had been dreading fills the air around them all. Emma's face whispers through her mind as she closes her eyes and then Daniels flashes as well. The nightmare she had just a short while ago begins to play again and memories of Daniels death dances with it. She quickly wipes a tear away that has escaped and lifts her head back up before turning around to face this.

"She's not .. dying." Regina shakes her head and curses her voice for breaking as her eyes capture Rumple's.

And at least he has the decency to look sympathetic as he says, "She is .. and I imagine you are feeling _things_ .. Emma in a way. True love has you two tethered and it can be .. extremely powerful especially between two magical entities like yourself and Miss Swan."

"Her name is Emma, for god's sake, you can at least have the decency to call her by her name since all of this was meant for you! We should have just let you die! What the hell is the point of saving you, your heart is black no matter what! You have no sense of redemption, nothing! You are - "

"A bastard .. yes, so you keep saying." He raises his hands in a wave of surrender and nods to the regal woman. "Regina, if I could save .. _Emma_ I would."

"I don't believe you."

"Fair enough. But I would whether you believe it or not. I .. can we sit please? And - "

"I'm not sitting down with you, what's next, you'll have your wife offer me tea and cookies?" She rolls her eyes and crosses her arms in front of her chest. "This is hardly a social call, Gold."

"Regina, he's still weak and .. he needs to - "

"I don't care. All I care about is - "

"Saving Emma .. I know Regina, but you saw the bruises, correct?" His eyes grow warm with sadness again and Regina wants to punch him square in the jaw. She even goes as far as to take a step forward but somehow her feet stop on their own accord.

"Well, imagine that, for someone who claimed to know _nothing_ , you sure know - "

"I will tell you everything that I do and did know but I need to sit, you can join me or leave. The choice is yours, dearie." The man turns and limps away, going back behind the curtain.

Regina can't help but think of the Wizard of Oz as she watches the curtain swoosh back in place. That's who Rumple has become, just a man who wishes or thinks he should have all this power but really it is all just an illusion. Smoke and mirrors. He can't grant wishes .. a brain, a heart, the nerve to someone. He is just a man now and as she flings the curtain back and walks into the room, her eyes catching as he winces in pain while sitting down, she realizes that she is all alone in this. Her mentor, her tutor, the man who guided her all those years ago, who set her on this path, he can not walk it anymore with her. She truly is on her own and an ache begins in her heart she can't truly explain aside from the fact that it feels an awful lot like when she lost her mother and father. She feels parentless all over again.

~sqsqsqsq~


	11. Chapter 11

**A.N.** _Some of the questions begin to get explained in this chapter, not all of them, but some. Thank you for all the wonderful feedback I have gotten for this story. The follows/favorites/reviews/thoughts you have all shared, it helps keep me motivated and encouraged to write! I listened to,_ Echo by Jason Walker _for this chapter._

~sqsqsqsq~

"So .. talk." Regina's voice sounds like gravel scraping along pavement as she crosses her arms in front of her chest and glares at Rumplestiltskin.

He narrows his eyes and then turns his head away for a moment, gathering his thoughts before he looks back up at the regal poised woman. "Do you remember when you came to see me, when I was trapped in the cage underground?"

"When you told me how to enact the curse .. yes. _Vaguely_ but yes."

"Well, I told you that their child was the key .. in stopping the darkness. And well, here we are, Regina. Emma is indeed the key and she stopped the darkness."

Regina turns pale as his words wash over her. She doesn't want to understand, to accept what he has in fact said but there is no denying it.

"So .. you did know? You knew everything that was going to happen? Emma having Henry and me adopting him and then .. Emma and me being - "

"Oh, I didn't say that. I can only see certain things .. what is fated. A blue print if you will, what is drawn by the universe."

Regina needs to sit, she can't stand any longer, this is starting to weigh her down and her legs are beginning to feel heavy. She begrudgingly sits down next to the man and sighs heavily, before saying, "What about the book? How did that come to be and where are the missing pages?"

"Missing pages? There are no missing pages."

"I didn't think so either but when Emma touches the book, ripped edges of paper appear along the inseam ... you don't know anything about _that_?" She narrows her eyes at him and tilts her head a little, waiting for him to answer.

"Miss - _Emma_ touches the pages and .. I can't explain that. I'm sorry."

And Regina almost believes him. _Almost_. "Well, where did the book come from in the first place?"

"I don't know that either, it was one of the things put in my possession after I became the Dark One. After I lost Bae .. I magicked myself a castle and a vault appeared, a huge room with many artifacts and trinkets stored in it. A treasure room in a way."

"Well, when did you read the book .. before or - "

"I found it one day not too long before I met your mother - "

"So, when you met Cora you had already read the book and is that why you sought her out, because you knew - "

"Yes, the book prophesied you and I was .. curious."

"Rumple, how is .. I'm having a hard time following this, how is _this_ book any different than Henry's or .. "

"How is it not Fate? A blueprint, if you will?"

"Yes."

"Well, for one .. because of Robin Hood."

Regina pales at the mention of his name, and then the all too familiar feeling of guilt sweeps through her, landing like lead in her stomach. "Robin?"

"He is your soulmate .. the universe's blue print for you but Emma, well, she is your Trinity."

Rumple can clearly see the confusion racing along brown eyes and he quickly holds up his hand before Regina can speak. "And not in the religious sense, but a Trinity nonetheless. You and Emma are bonded, connected with magic .. the most powerful magic there is - "

"True Love." She whispers.

"Yes, Regina. And see, the universe doesn't _create_ True Love, it can't. True Love is rare .. a rare bird if you will. And it's only given flight to certain people and even then, sometimes that flight .. well, it never takes off so to speak. Because Fate, the universe's right hand, more often than not, wins out. Especially in this realm, a land without magic , where hope and love can feel like an illusion."

"And Henry? Is he part - "

"Of the Trinity? Yes .. he bonds you and Emma as well. I can give you an example of what you, yourself did years ago, an example between Fate and the prophecy."

He takes a breath before continuing, "You came to see me about a child, remember?"

Regina quickly nods her head and pleads with curious eyes for him to go on.

"I procured Henry for you but then you found out about his origin .. at the time, you came raging in with little Henry in tow because you had found out who his mother was .. a child found in the woods right around the time, Storybrooke was created. You ranted on about how I wanted all of this to end, you were talking about the curse but not coming out and saying it, and I had no idea what you were talking about, I like everyone else, lost my memories until Emma came to town, I only remembered when she told me her name at Granny's Inn."

"Rumple, that never happened. I came to you at the shop and inquired about a child, yes. And then you found me Henry - "

"You don't remember because you drank a potion you made in your vault. I was there, I know, Regina. After you stormed into my shop that day, it had me questioning things, the information you had shared, albeit in riddles, still it made me wonder .. a few days later, I saw your car parked outside your family's crypt and I went in, I walked down the staircase and listened - "

"You mean eavesdropped?" She rolls her eyes at the man and he smirks back at her.

"Yes, well .. however you want to name it, may I continue?"

Regina sweeps her hand between the two of them, "By all means .. "

"You told Henry a story .. " Rumple closes his eyes a moment, trying to remember the exact words he had overheard from so long ago, "About a Queen that cast a glorious curse .. she despaired when she learned that revenge was not enough, she was lonely and so she searched the land for a little boy to be her prince .. and then she found him .. " He smiles to himself, proud of his memory as he continues, "You went on to tell a story about procuring an ancient potion to forget your troubles, your fears, so you can be a proper mother to your son and live happily ever after."

"So, you were there that day, and saw me trifling with potions inside a hidden room and you thought - "

Rumple laughs, "I thought it was all hocus pocus and you were just trying to be a misguided .. witch." He laughs some more and shrugs.

She rolls her eyes at his jest and stares past him, trying to recall anything of what he just described. "I .. I don't remember - "

"Well, I'd imagine not, that was the point, to forget .. about Emma and the threat she would bring to you and the town. The curse. Henry."

"Rumple, how does that prove - "

"Because the day you went to return Henry, that's the day Pan had his goons show up to take the boy, a fact I found out by my father in Neverland, but you changed your mind. You took Henry back home with you and drank that potion, continuing and enforcing that bond with Emma even more. It was a choice you alone made. Free will, Regina." The man chuckles and then continues, "The universe had Pan's men aligned to take the boy, that was Fate's plan .. the blueprint. And you altered the course, following the path of - "

"True Love. The prophecy."

Their eyes catch and hold for a moment before Rumple whispers out a quiet, "Yes."

"But you needed Emma to come to town to break the curse, so if it was Fate's plan to - "

"Ah, that is the twist, Regina .. a twist even I didn't understand at the time, while masterminding the curse being cast. Emma coming here wasn't supposed to happen if Fate had anything to do with it, you and Emma meeting, was an act of Free will .. from the prophecy coming to be."

"So, that's why Emma and I can hear each other's thoughts because of the Trinity? Our connection."

"Yes, you two alone are very powerful magical entities, so you two combined .. well, the possibilities are endless, really."

"And that's why we were able to stop the trigger in the mines and when Emma touched my arm, the hat started spinning, opening the portal that day with the wraith .. because of - "

"The magic you two share inside. You two are tethered together Regina and have been since .. well, even before she was born. You in a way helped Snow and Charming meet. You rescued Charming from the guillotine - "

"But what about Daniel? He was my true love - "

"He wasn't. He was your soul mate in the Enchanted Forest, Emma is and always will be your one True Love."

"That's why True Love is so rare because it is hard to link someone with just one person forever, correct?" Regina's eyes glisten with unshed tears.

"Yes, because like I said, the universe and Fate, is what guides most things, events, people .. so to be bonded to someone in True Love well, it's just unheard of really. It's not practical."

"Like the expression, there are plenty of fish in the sea .. " She wipes her eyes quickly and clears her throat.

"Exactly, yes. There are so many people, so many different outcomes that can happen in any one moment, especially here, in this dimension."

~sqsqsqsq~

Emma makes her way down the stairs and stops cold when she sees her parents and Henry sitting around the table, talking in hushed voices.

Yeah, that can't be good, she thinks. They all quickly look up at her and the whispering immediately stops.

"Gee, nothing like walking into a room and knowing everyone was just talking about you." She shrugs and walks to the fridge, helping herself to a glass of orange juice.

"We weren't talking about you." Snow protests but is quickly shot down by a look thrown over Emma's shoulder.

A look that clearly says, _Please_.

A knock interrupts this silent exchange between mother and daughter and Henry gets up to answer the door.

They can all hear Henry saying a rushed, "Not a good idea .. " before Hook is there standing in the middle of the room, looking at Emma with sad puppy dog eyes.

Charming rolls his eyes and buries his face in his hands. Snow looks at the ground before quickly stealing a glance back up between Emma and Hook.

Henry shuts the door while saying, "But, come on in, anyway."

Emma glances around at all of them, taking it all in and sighs as she sets the glass of juice down on the counter. She glances at Hook and then her parents before her eyes fall to Henry. She knows she could just puff herself away but it would only prolong the inevitable, at some point she needs to deal with this man, and well, it might as well be now. Just think of it as a band aid, Emma, rip it off and get the irritation over with.

She sighs and mentally gives herself a high five. She can do this. She's the god damn dark one after all. She looks back at Hook and nods her head toward the door. "Come on, let's go talk."

~sqsqsqsq~

"But you said yourself, you saw Emma as the key and that she would stop the darkness, so how were you able to see that if it was part of the prophecy and not fate?"

"I didn't see that, I .. sometimes words would come to me as the Dark One. Sometimes, I would - "

"Just know things," Regina taps her forehead, "In here."

"Yes."

"Emma said the same thing earlier to me. That she just knows things now."

"Yes, I imagine she is a bit prophetic but again, when I told you that, Regina, I didn't see Emma saving you, absorbing the Darkness .. I knew she was born to be the savior and yes, I had read the prophecy book but again, even I was duped by all of this and didn't quite understand."

"There was in fact no set course to follow. You were going in blind but thought you weren't. You thought you had it all figured out. Emma being the Savior was in fact the prophecy and not what Fate had in store?"

"Correct. I set things up the best I could, so the curse would be enacted, because I wanted to find my son, but everything else, well, I didn't really care to be honest. My goal was in finding Baelfire. Everything else was just irrelevant to me."

"Well, that's not entirely true, and you know it. You wanted to find your son but you also wanted Magic back, Rumple. You missed the power and the magic as much if not more than your son."

The bitter truth of that statement lays heavy on the man's heart as his eyes find Regina's. "Fair enough."

~sqsqsqsq~

Emma and Hook walk side by side down the street and for a moment it feels like how it was, before yesterday happened and Emma's world literally got swept away. She glances at the man who she thought she had loved or could grow to be in love with and there is a part of her who feels sad for that loss. But she can't help but know that there is a much bigger part of her that knows, Regina is the one she chooses. Over and over it's always been Regina. Whether they were fighting or not, that woman was always in her blood. In her soul, whispering to her even when she couldn't hear it. Or make sense of it, but it was always Regina Mills.

"I'm sorry, Killian."

He stops her then, grabbing her arm and pulling her to face him. "You loved me, just yesterday, Swan .. this is .. insane. You know that? This book is - "

She wills the darkness that is swirling inside of her to settle down as she quickly closes her eyes and inhales a deep breath. She opens her eyes and exhales slowly and Hook watches her eyes lighten back from the dark ebony they had turned.

"I anger you now .. I anger you a lot .. but anger can be passion, right? So, maybe that is a sign - "

Emma holds up her hand and he stops talking for which she is grateful. She didn't think it would be that easy, a simple gesture could actually make him shut up. Praise the gods for _that_ small miracle, she thinks.

"I could tell you about passion, Hook .. the kind of passion born out of anger but it would just hurt you more - "

"I can take it, Swan."

"Really? Cause, kind of don't think you can."

His eyes study hers and his heart sinks because maybe he can't take it after all. He knows who she is talking about. _Regina._

"So, you're in love with her then? Just like that?"

"Well, there is no _just like that_ between me and Regina .. it .. over time - "

"Over time? What time? I mean this is - "

"Nothing to do with me being Dark, let's be clear on that .. I loved Regina before I was dark, there was a pull to her from the moment - "

Hook laughs, "Let me guess, from the moment your eyes met?"

"No, actually, from the moment Henry showed up at my door that night in Boston. I .. there was _something_ there, like whispering to me, but I ignored it and I don't know, I just assumed the kid had two parents but when I walked him up to the door, I found out he just had a mom and then Regina came running out and .. the whispering got a little louder."

"And now?"

"Well, now, it sounds like I have a damn marching band going on inside my head concerning her, okay?" She looks up at the man and he can't help but grin a little because yeah, he gets it. It stings like hell, but he gets it. Later on, there will be some much needed Rum consumption but for now, he puts an arm around her and guides her back to the loft.

~sqsqsqsq~

The air becomes quiet and still as Regina whispers, "So, how do I save Emma?"

He doesn't answer her, instead he begins to fidget in his seat and quite frankly that move alone frightens Regina, because Rumplestiltskin does _not_ fidget.

"Rumple, what is happening to Emma exactly?"

The man stops his nervous moving around and stares at the ground for awhile before answering, "I told you, Regina .. she's dying. Her light magic is battling against the darkness inside of her and .. "

"So, the darkness is going to win? And .. kill her." Regina's voice breaks and she makes no attempt to stop the tears from falling freely now. She can't hold them back any longer.

Rumple glances away and shakes his head. "No, the darkness will lose, she is .. Emma is very powerful and her light magic will destroy the darkness .. but at a price."

And there it is. The infamous tag line that has haunted Regina since she met this man. _Magic always comes with a price._

And she hates him all over again as she raises up and begins to yell, yelling that turns to screams and then crying in an instant as her fists pummel his chest and she grips the lapels of his jacket. He sits there and takes it, as she eventually buries her face along his chest and he holds her as she sobs against him. He looks up once and finds Belle standing in the doorway, her own tears falling quietly down her cheeks before he looks away again and strokes Regina's back as she continues to cry.

~sqsqsqsq~


	12. Chapter 12

**A.N.** ** _This chapter has upset some readers, so I am posting this edit author's note, to just give a fair warning that the chapter ends in telling a major character's death .. some of you have messaged me in earlier chapters expressing_** _no spoilers **so by trying to accommodate that, I've now upset others who wanted/needed to know information beforehand .. I truly am sorry for any emotional turmoil or heartache this caused anyone .. love to all ~**_

 _"Wait for me to come home .. "_ \- Ed Sheeran - 'Photograph'

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Regina is sitting up in bed, with her legs tucked under her, as she scrolls down on the laptop. This is how Emma finds her when she knocks lightly on the half open bedroom door.

Emma watches as she briefly glances her way and then brown eyes focus once more on the computer screen. She bites her lower lip and leans against the door frame. She can't help but think how beautiful Regina looks as the soft glow from the bedside lamp cascades over her.

"So, still mad?" Her voice is quiet as it fills the silence and there is a clear sadness mixed in between the melody of her words that makes Regina look at Emma. Her eyes take in the woman standing before her, from her hands that are stuffed into her back jean pockets and a foot that scuffs nervously along the carpet floor, up to those piercing caramel eyes and Regina feels her heart melt into a puddle of goo inside her chest.

"Well, apparently I already drank a potion to forget you, Emma .. and look how well that turned out. Just another thing we have in common with your parents own true love story, it seems." Regina sighs and shifts her eyes back to the screen in front of her.

"Can I come in, or would you rather I stand in the doorway while you talk in riddles?"

Regina nods to the empty spot beside her and goes back to scrolling.

Emma sighs and makes her way into the room, kicking off her shoes before getting up onto the queen sized bed. She leans her cheek along Regina's shoulder as she looks to see what has her so intrigued.

Regina feels the weight of Emma against her and she responds automatically, almost by instinct as she finds herself brushing a kiss along the top of Emma's head before turning back to the information displayed on the screen in front of them.

"Um .. you're googling?" Emma chuckles and shakes her head before her eyes take in the word Regina has typed into the search engine.

"Trinity?" She scrunches up her nose in confusion as she places a hand over Regina's to stop her movements. "As in the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost? Since when are you so religious?"

Or maybe Regina has always been religious? Emma wonders as she looks up at the woman, it's not like they have talked about this subject before.

Regina's voice interrupts her thoughts, "I .. I'm not .. it's not a religious meaning I'm looking for .. it's just .. " Regina stops talking and Emma waits for her to continue her line of thought but she doesn't. A few seconds turn into four minutes and Emma sighs in frustration.

"It's just what, Regina?" Emma pulls herself away from the woman's shoulder and sits up.

Regina immediately misses the comforting weight, before curious eyes find hers and Regina looks away quickly before asking, "Do you .. do you love me?"

And the question comes at Emma like a line drive would cracking off a wooden bat, high into left field, as her eyes widen and she opens and closes her mouth a few times. She wants to say yes, she wants to nod her head but the pressure of the answer is crushing her right now. She remembers to take a deep breath, to just breathe before she finally answers the only way she knows how to. "Um .. do _you_ love _me_?"

Regina's answer is immediate as she quickly says, "I asked you first."

"Seriously?" Emma arches an eyebrow at her.

Regina nods her head and that small act mixed with the way brown eyes are looking at her has Emma thinking of Henry and the mischievous, " _Try me .. "_ the boy had muttered the night they had first met. Staring at Regina, she now knows where Henry had gotten those certain looks and confidence from.

Emma glances away until she feels fingers cupping her face and drawing her gaze back to those smooth chocolate eyes.

Regina brushes her knuckles over her cheek before leaning forward and kissing the soft skin. She feels a whisper of, "I'm sorry I slapped you .. " against her flesh and she feels herself shrug before whispering her own quiet, "It's okay." She brushes a thumb over Regina's cheek, swiping a stolen tear away before curling a finger gently around a strand of Regina's soft hair. "It's getting so long .. "

"Hmm .. and yours is now very short." Regina runs her fingers through a few strands while Emma sighs softly, wrapping strong arms around Regina, pulling her close. Regina can't help but smile against her neck as she kisses her, feeling Emma's pulse echo along her lips.

"We've somehow flipped huh .. from our hair cuts to now I'm the evil one and you are .. "

Emma can feel Regina shake against her before the soft crying fills her ears and her heart begins to ache. She pretty much hates it when Regina cries, and this time she doesn't say anything out loud, just one word in her thoughts for Regina to hear, as she lets Regina melt into her as she rubs her back, soothing, consistent strokes as she presses light kisses along her violet scented hair.

Just one word. _Yes._

Regina nods against her before responding with her own thought. _I love you too._

 _Please don't cry._

 _I .. you're not evil Emma .. even now with all that darkness, your light is overshadowing it .. but it's .. killing you._

And then Emma is hit with an entourage of Regina's thoughts, all scrambled and chaotic as she feels Regina hold her tighter and buries her face into the crook of her neck. Fresh tears hit her skin as they fall from Regina's eyes and she tries to decipher what Regina is thinking but all she can make out are a few words. Words that make a repetitive streak through the barrage of thoughts, flashing like lightning.

 _Trinity .. Fate .. Universe is a tricky bastard._

Emma can't help but smile as she hears that thought and it's that very sass that makes her love Regina so much.

~sqsqsqsq~

 _ **Eleven years later ..**_

Regina kneels down as she brushes fallen leaves away to place four bright sunflowers along the ground. She glances up and runs her fingers lightly over the embedded stone.

She closes her eyes as she finishes tracing the last letter and when she opens her eyes once more the name is blurry from unshed tears. She sighs heavily as she glances up at the sky. She lets the tears fall free then as she glances back to the name she had just touched.

 _Emma Swan Mills_

It feels like just yesterday, Regina was running her fingers over the etched dagger after Emma disappeared into a sea of blackness. Just yesterday, they had found each other and loved again. She feels a light touch from a breeze caress her cheek and she smiles through her tears as she has one thought race through her mind.

 _Hello Emma._

She pulls out a letter Emma had written her, a letter that is worn from always being kept in her pocket, no matter what she is wearing. A letter that keeps a picture hidden inside its folds, one of Regina's favorites. A picture of a smiling Emma as she snuggles their little girl. Her eyes fall to the part of the letter where Emma had told her that every time she feels a breeze touch her face, it's her, saying Hello and sending her a sweet kiss.

 _God, she misses her. So much._

It's moments like these where she wonders if they had made the right choice. After defeating the darkness and in fact saving Emma against all the odds stacked against them, they had decided to live a life without magic. Without the threat it always seemed to bring. They had married in Storybrooke, under the apple tree, with Henry walking her down the aisle to a beaming Emma. They had left that night, the three of them, crossing the town line and never looking back. They spent a month traveling, figuring out where home would be. Both women were torn between two places. Henry became the deciding vote, so Puerto Rico it was. A beautiful island, magical in it's own way.

They had adopted their little girl there. A one year old, named Gracie and her name and all it represented brought just that to all their lives. _Grace._

The flip side of life is death and it is an irony Regina will always wonder about because despite all they had been through, all they had survived, death at some point showed up and claimed Emma. Was it the universe finally getting its way? Maybe. Regina, of course, wanted to go back to Storybrooke, to heal Emma .. but Emma would not allow it. No magic. No price to have to pay down the road because well, maybe her sickness was the price after all, for cheating death beforehand. That was her views and despite every second of the day, Regina wanting to save her wife and fix it, she stayed silent on the outside and respected her wife's choices.

Regina shakes her head at all the memories that has flooded her mind as she whispers, "I can't believe I lost you one year ago .. ten years was not enough, Miss Swan. Just .. not nearly enough." Her voice catches on the last word and she buries her face in her hands as she allows herself to truly break down in tears. She cries for her true love, who she misses with every heartbeat inside every day.

 **~sqsqsqsq~**

 **A.N.** _I listened to_ Photograph by Ed Sheeran _for this chapter._


	13. Chapter 13

**A.N.** _I listened to,_ Catch my Breath by Kelly Clarkson (for the happier parts) and Last Train Home by Ryan Star (for the sadder ones) _.._

~sqsqsqsq~

"Mom, what are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious, Henry .. packing. Go start as well, we leave in an hour."

Henry watches as his mom quickly opens dresser drawers and he listens as hangers fall to the ground as clothes are pulled frantically off of them. He sighs quietly while brushing fingers through his hair before stepping forward and grabbing his mom's shoulders.

"Mom .. stop. Please." His eyes try to focus on hers but she is looking past him while trying to shrug free.

"Let go and help me get your sister's things ready."

"No." He drops his hands away and crosses his arms in front of his chest.

With that sharp of an answer, it's enough to finally allow Regina to focus on her son as her own eyes narrow back at him. "No? Henry Daniel Swan Mills .. I'm not asking. Now go!"

"it's not what she wants and you have to respect that."

"Respect her choosing to die, never! I'm not having this conversation with you, you are too young to - "

"I'm not a little kid anymore, God dammit! Don't tell me I don't understand because I understand far too well, I've always understood _everything_ , I believed more than you two ever did! It was like pulling teeth with the two of you - "

"I'm not discussing mine and your mother's love life with - "

"Oh, I'm not talking about that, _that_ was the god damn irony with all of it, Mom. You two fell in love and came to terms with it faster than she got swept away that day. I'm talking about everything that came before it. Trying to convince Emma the curse was real, having you trying to cover it up and keep the book and Emma away from me, how it affected our relationship and then having to deal with Cora coming to town and the aftermath of her death. You trying to kill Snow White .. or wanting to anyway. Then the trigger and me being kidnapped and then Elsa showing up and bringing her ice magic. Zelena being your sister and then her becoming pregnant with Robin's baby. Our life was a god damn soap opera, and you want to go back to all of _that_?! And tarnish what we have built here? _Here_ , Mom, this is our home, it's what you and Emma _chose_ , free will .. if you try and strong arm Emma into going back, even if it's going to save her, well, you will lose her anyway, Mom .. trust me. She will resent you for it and it will destroy the two of you."

"Let her hate me then! I don't care as long as she is - "

"What?! Alive? If you two split up it will kill her anyway, and you too .. this is .. " He stops talking because the tears are running down both their faces and his voice is gone, shaking too much to form real words. They step forward and embrace, both trying to outweigh the sadness from the other as they cry against each other.

When the tears finally subside, Henry is able to finish his thought as he whispers the rest into his mother's ear, a quiet heartbeat of, "This is life .. without magic."

New tears strike a path down her face as she pulls back and nods quietly at her son. She clears her throat and quickly wipes her tears away before saying, "Help me clean this all up, I don't want Emma to know about this."

He nods his head before squeezing her hand. "Okay."

~sqsqsqsq~

 _ **Ten years earlier ..**_

Emma closes the laptop and Regina turns to open it again. "No, you need to sleep, it's late and - "

"I'm perfectly capable of deciding when my bed time should be, Miss - "

"Don't Miss Swan me, get some sleep and be prepared to tell me what you _aren't_ telling me in the morning." Emma gives Regina an all knowing wink before she turns to climb off the bed but a hand wraps around her wrist, stopping her.

"Where are you going?"

"To bed." Emma laughs but Regina's piercing brown eyes stop her laughter as she hears one thought chime inside her mind.

 _Stay._

 _Regina .._

 _Please._

 _I don't think that's a good idea._

 _Why?_

 _You know why._

 _We are both far too tired to fool around, Emma._

 _Fool around? That's what you're gonna call it?_

Regina tugs on her wrist, pulling Emma forward until their lips are nearly touching.

 _Regina .._

The older woman sighs heavily, her breath ghosting along Emma's lips before she trails kisses soft as butterfly wings along Emma's jawline, down her neck and over her pulse point.

 _Would you prefer me to say, make love Emma .._

She closes her eyes, allowing herself to relish in the feeling of having Regina's lips on her flesh before she exclaims out loud, "Yep, that's it .. I'm going to the guest room."

~sqsqsqsq~

Both women wake up to pounding on the mansion's front door and they meet in the hallway, with sleep filled eyes. They make it half way down the stairs before Regina glimpses bare legs. Emma had been sleeping in her usual bed attire, underwear and a tank top. She rolls her eyes and with a wave of her hand, a pair of pajama pants covers up toned legs. Emma raises an eyebrow at her but Regina just shrugs as they continue down the stairs.

Regina looks through the peephole and quickly opens the door.

"Here, this is for you .. you might find it to be handy." Hook shrugs as he places the wand in Regina's hand. They exchange a look, a look that says more than words ever could as she nods her head at the man before saying a quiet, "Thank you."

Emma can't help but just stare at the two of them, amazed at what she is witnessing. She shakes her head and waves a hand around the two of them. "Um .. what is going on here? Are you two actually having a moment? So, okay, apparently, hell has froze over. Must have missed _that_ memo."

Regina rolls her eyes and looks down at the wand. Emma follows her gaze and she recognizes it as what her and Hook had used to get back to Storybrooke.

"Hey! How'd you get that? Wasn't - "

"You brought it back with you when we came through the portal, Swan."

"And you took it?"

"And you're surprised by this? Hello, Pirate, here."

"So, why come clean and give it up now?"

Hook and Regina's eyes catch briefly before he replies, "Because I heard the last Dark one is now very much awake and it's only a matter of time before he's up to his old tricks, love. Figured get this to you before that can happen. I imagine Regina can figure out what it's capable of." With that the man tips his hook and leaves the porch, closing the door behind him.

Emma clears her throat and Regina glances up at her. "So, what do you think that's capable of?"

Her eyes fall back down to the glistening wand and then they meet Emma's again as she whispers, "Beating Fate."

~sqsqsqsq~

 _ **Ten years later ..**_

"Hmm .. do you know what this reminds me of?"

"I can wager a guess ... our first time?"

Emma snuggles into Regina's chest, breathing in her wife's sweet scent before whispering, "Yes."

Regina runs her fingers up and down Emma's bare back, kissing the top of her head. "You were so nervous." She laughs softy into Emma's hair and kisses her again.

"Well, if that isn't the pot calling the kettle black." Emma chuckles as Regina pokes her in the side and she in turn begins to tickle Regina's stomach, knowing all too well the highly sensitive spot on the woman.

Regina hears herself laugh as Emma continues to tickle her and the all consuming reality hits her like a storm coming to shore, fast and fierce and without preamble. Emma feels her wife tense and she stops her fingers from tracing it's teasing path. She looks down at Regina and her eyes soften as she sighs. She had forgotten too, for a few hours they had somehow forgotten and it was _magical_ , Emma can't help but think. She gets lost in those beautiful dark brown swirls as Regina gazes at her and she wishes for the millionth time, she wasn't sick.

"Emma - "

She raises her hand, begging with pleading eyes for Regina to not follow through with her thought, because she knows what it is. She knows it will be a question she's not sure she can still answer without breaking down. And if she does breakdown, she knows her wife will take that as a sign of surrender and will whisk her back to magic and fairy tales. Back to a place, she just doesn't want to be a part of ever again.

Regina closes her mouth and turns quickly onto her side, willing the tears to stay at bay as she shuts her eyes tight.

Emma looks up at the ceiling before stealing a glance at Regina's back, reaching out a hand to touch her wife but stopping herself. She whispers quietly into the silence, "Do you hate me?"

Regina turns over and glares at her wife, "Of course not. How can you even ask me that? If you want full disclosure, I _hate_ the choice you made, Emma - "

"That's not fair - "

"And watching you die is?! And then I spend my life - "

"Please don't. Just don't." Emma jumps off the bed, away from Regina, away from all of this. She flings on a t shirt and shorts before taking a few strides to the door but Regina's voice stops her cold.

"What if I was sick? Huh? You would just - "

"If you were sick would you want me to take you back there? To heal you .. with _magic_? Break the promise we had made to each other, a promise we had both wanted and agreed on?"

Regina quickly sits up in bed, bringing herself to the edge as she glares at Emma, while pointing a finger at her, "You would knock me unconscious and drag me over that town line if you had to and don't for one second try and tell me otherwise."

"You're right, I would .. if _we_ didn't have children. If it was just _us_ , I would in a heartbeat .. you and I both know that's the reason you _haven't_ dragged me over that town line, because of the promise we made for our _kids_ , Regina."

The older woman's jaw tightens as she stares at her wife. She feels her heart soar and then fall quickly inside her chest because it's true. She loves Emma, she loves her so much but Henry and Gracie is held up to a different degree. Both her and Emma love them more than themselves, more than each other, it's just how it is.

"It's just how it is when you're a parent and _you_ know this better than anyone."

Regina's eyes widen at her wife because for a second she thinks Emma can read her thoughts again and it reminds her of a decade ago and all of what they had shared comes galloping back, making her heart swell inside her chest.

~sqsqsqsq~

 _ **Ten years earlier ..**_

"Beating Fate?" Emma scrunches up her nose in a move Regina is beginning to find truly adorable despite all the impending doom and gloom and then she watches as Emma sighs heavily before saying, "We aren't going back to sleep are we?"

Regina hugs the wand to her chest before grabbing Emma's hand and pulling her toward the study. "No."

She allows Regina to tug her forward despite whining in protest, "The Dark one isn't supposed to be up with the crack of dawn, Regina, it's actually in the rule book, ya know."

After two cups of coffee, Emma is jittery enough to actually process all that Regina has told her, about Rumple being indeed awake and the conversation they had. She now understands the massive thought overload Regina had bombarded her with last night and why certain key words were on constant repeat inside the brunette's mind.

She realizes Regina is staring at her, waiting for some kind of answer and Emma has no idea what she is supposed to say except the exact thought she is having at the moment which is, "Regina, my brain is seriously hurting right now, trying to absorb this all. I've watched the Back to the Future trilogy like a thousand times, and I still don't understand certain things in that, okay? So, this .. " She waves her hand between the two of them, "And this .. " She picks up the prophet book and slams it back down on the table, "Makes those movies seem like child's play."

Regina rolls her eyes at the confused woman and picks up the book, "Here, try getting the missing pages to show."

She stares at Regina as if she just asked her to make the Lord himself appear before them. She shakes her head and shrugs, "Oh, sure .. no problem, let me just say the magic words .. hmm .. abracadabra .. bibbidi bobbidi boo .. supercali - "

"Miss Swan, will you - "

"Be serious? I left serious about three exits back, Regina. We have both officially veered off onto cuckoo for cocoa puffs land. Hate to break it to ya." She closes the book again and slides it away from her. "Why can't it ever be simple, like hey, girl meets girl and hey, they share a son together, and hey, they both can do magic, and hey - "

"I think you just created the newest pop craze song lyrics, Miss Swan .. Congratulations." Regina rolls her eyes and Emma shoots an appreciative grin at her before a serious tone takes over her voice.

"So, you mind telling me why you didn't seem all that surprised that Hook of all people was showing up at your door, offering you things?"

Regina glances away but Emma's thoughts are persistent.

 _Didn't think I'd catch that did you? I'm highly intuitive, Regina._

 _Yes, well .._

 _Come on, out with it._

 _I may or may not have went to see Hook after I left Rumple's yesterday._

 _Are you kidding me?_

 _I was .. desperate._

 _I'd say._

 _Emma .._

 _No, I mean seriously? You went to see the man you so kindly refer to as the sea eel -_

 _I call him other names, like sea urchin .. Captain Wet and Boring .._

 _Yeah, I got it .. still, I think it's .. well, rather telling is all._

 _Telling?_

 _That you would go to him of all people, to try and help._ Emma shrugs.

Regina grabs her hand and a steady warmth flows between them. _I would go to anyone I had to, I would go anywhere I had to, in order to save you, Emma .. to not lose you._

Her fingers brush lightly over Emma's before squeezing them tight and brown eyes shimmer with fresh tears.

 _Regina .._

~sqsqsqsq~

 ** _Ten years later ..._**

"So, where have you been going to cry?"

Regina stares at her wife for a minute, blinking quickly a few times before she moves away from the edge of the bed and back to her pillows. She fluffs up one before placing it behind her back while saying, "I don't know what you are talking about."

Emma sighs and walks back over to the bed, climbing up onto it. "Well, considering you were highly emotional back when I was dark and you were trying to save me and now, I haven't seen you shed one tear aside from the day we .. found out .. " Emma catches Regina look away and a steady hand cups Regina's chin, drawing her back to Emma's gaze.

"As much as it makes my heart ache when you cry, I think it breaks me even more knowing you are crying alone somewhere and keeping it all in here." Emma lightly places a hand along Regina's chest, over the spot where her heart lies underneath.

Regina places her own hand over Emma's chest and sighs softly before bringing her eyes to catch sea green again. A light smirk crosses her lips as she uses Emma's own words from earlier. "Well, if that isn't the pot calling the kettle black I don't know what is, Mrs. Swan Mills .. " Regina's lips brush over Emma's and both women fall into an embrace, kissing and running feather light touches over the other.

"Sometimes, kissing you feels like the first time all over again, how is that possible?" Emma's eyes twinkle in wonder as she smiles at Regina.

"Hmm .. maybe there's a little magic left between us after all."

~sqsqsqsq~

 _ **Ten years earlier ...**_

"You can't be serious?"

"Emma, now isn't the time to get all moral and - "

"He's just a man, Regina. A man who wanted to save his son."

"Still, it was a choice - "

"Was it? I mean, with all this talk about the universe and Fate actually working against us and .. I don't know .. I just think, at the end of the day, Rumplestiltskin tried to change the universe's plan and by doing that, it backfired on him."

Regina's eyes cloud over in confusion and Emma puts her hands up before she can speak. "Let me finish, he became Dark to save Neal, all those years ago and he accomplished that but it had a price, Regina. All magic comes with a price right, and the price was, he lost his son anyway. He messed with Fate and he got the horns."

"Emma, listen to me, if we kiss and unleash the Darkness, I can guide it to Rumple with the wand, and - "

"And let all this darkness feast on him and then what?"

"I can open a portal back to the Enchanted Forest, let the rest of the town go through it and - "

Emma closes her eyes, taking in a much needed breath of air before she exhales slowly, opening her eyes to look at Regina again. "And what happens to Gold?" She whispers.

"He get's swept away like .. like you did and we keep the dagger, we leave .. cross the town line with Henry and - "

"And what? Start over? Just like that?"

Regina's brown eyes lighten as they stare into Emma's before she whispers back, "Yes, just like that."

"What about Belle? We are sacrificing others for our own happiness here, Regina, you don't think that's gonna come with a price .. down the road?"

"If it saves you then I'll gladly pay it." She nods her head firmly and a determined look graces her features.

God, Emma knows that look. She has seen that look countless of times, she has been on the receiving end of _that_ look, when Regina was trying to keep Henry from her. When they battled and berated each other that first year she came to town. When chainsaws against apple trees and punches thrown outside crypts was the normal dance both women shared.

She has to look away from that look because it sends a chill quickly down her spine and then back up until it lands ice cold inside her heart. When her eyes look up toward Regina's again they are clouded in tears and Regina's eyes widen in alarm, as Emma grips her hand tighter inside her own.

"I can't allow you to do this, Regina .. you've worked too hard to not be _that_ person anymore. You were guided to be evil, Regina but deep down, it's just not who you truly are. You are good and pure. You are the woman who jumped on a horse and saved my mom. You are the woman who decided to keep Henry and drink a potion in order to give him love and happiness. You are a woman who always tries with the best intentions to never fail. You were never the Evil Queen, you were always just Regina. And I need you to please see that and embrace - "

Emma is stopped by lips, Regina's lips pressing on her own as the older woman leans across the table and kisses her and so many emotions race through her then. The feeling of magic courses through both women as she tries to focus on the will to push her away, but the touch of Regina's hands cupping her face and pulling her in close, so close, while deepening the kiss sends Emma into a tailspin until all she is capable of focusing on are their tongues dancing together in between shared breaths.

Regina acts on impulse as Emma's kind words envelop her. She doesn't care about the darkness, about Fate or the prophecy. About the knowledge that she can't remember after fainting. She doesn't care about any of that. All she cares about is Emma and kissing her, wrapping her up and making her feel safe, alive, home. She wants to give to Emma all that Emma has given to her. Has breathed into her. She wants just one moment, one moment to be happy and in love and as her lips find Emma's and the kiss deepens, Regina has one thought race through her mind. One thought she hopes Emma can hear as she sighs in content against her lips.

 _We are more than just a moment._

Regina can feel their kiss breathing life into the magic that pulses out around them and the room and she can only imagine the rest of Storybrooke.

 _True loves kiss._

They both pull away at the same time, breaking the connection and Emma's eyes widen in alarm as reality slams into her. All she can manage to say as brown eyes bear into her is, "Regina, you promised."

Regina can only stare at her, waiting for something to happen. She has an image of the darkness shooting out of Emma's mouth like some clip from the Exorcist and she begins to shudder at that visual and Emma begins to freak out in her own way. She pushes the chair back, jumping off of it as if she has a hundred red ants in her pants and quickly backs away from the older woman.

She puffs herself to the middle of town and the air is heavy and swirling around her. As if Storybrooke itself is stuck inside a giant funnel. She has the image flash through her mind from the Wizard of Oz of one of the farmers yelling, "It's a twister .. a twister!" as the air continues to swirl around her and the wind is deafening.

Regina is standing at her side a second later and she can barely feel Regina's fingers circling her own, as the pressure from the air is just too intense. Regina immediately recognizes the colors of air swirling all around them as she looks at Emma through a haze of red and gray.

That gnawing feeling begins to twist inside her gut and her eyes take in Henry's scarf as it floats through the air and lands by her feet. She picks it up and a memory bursts in bright colors inside her brain.

 _She is standing outside with Emma, layered around red and gray smoke, talking and then kissing the woman as she holds Emma's wrist._

She pulls Emma close to her, grabbing her wrist and the momentum takes Emma off guard as she falls forward into Regina. She touches the woman's shoulder trying to steady herself and her eyes catch the glimmer of Regina's earrings. The silver metal seems to be glowing at her and she shakes her head, thinking her eyes must be playing tricks on her.

She brings her fingers to one earring and studies it and her eyes widen in alarm when she realizes what the earring is shaped as.

"You have dream catcher earrings."

"Emma, earrings?! You want to talk about - "

"When did you get them?" But Emma thinks she already knows the answer as Regina shakes her head in confusion but answers her anyway.

"On my trip back with Henry, I stopped to get a cup of coffee and he was fussing while waiting in line, there was a display of earrings so I grabbed a pair to dangle at him to try and calm him down and his eyes lit up and he .. he smiled, it seemed. And then I actually looked at them and I felt .. "

"You felt?" Emma presses her to continue.

"It felt like I was .. home." Regina shakes her head and continues, "Oh, Emma .. it was silly .. it - "

Emma cups Regina's cheek with her hand as a memory quickly flashes inside her mind.

 _She is crying as Neal lays in her arms, under a blanket of leaves. He is dying after sacrificing himself and all she wants to do is be able to save him as he whispers with a wavering breath, "Go find Tallahassee .. "_

Her eyes find Regina's and tears begin to fall down her cheeks. "It .. it wasn't silly, Regina .. it - "

Emma goes to raise her other hand to cup Regina's face and her tattoo catches Regina's eye. It seems to be shimmering in a blueish tint and she brings Emma's wrist up to her eye line to look at it better. "What is this?"

"It's a tattoo, Regina .. " Emma says it mockingly, as the _Duh_ is left unsaid between the two women but Regina's eyes focus once more back onto the color as she watches the flower shade to a heightened blue.

Emma follows her gaze and wrinkles her nose in confusion. "Why is my tattoo changing color?" She recognizes the color after studying it for another minute and she looks at Regina again. "That's the color of your smoke .. like the _exact_ color."

"My smoke is purple, Emma."

"No, it's not. It's blue now. I should know, you've puffed away from me enough times in the last day or so." Emma shakes her head as her eyes take in the swirling smoke around them and she says, "Are we really stuck inside some alternate Wizard of Oz, here?" She touches her tattoo and raises it up to show Regina again. "Do I have the tattoo of a different color, like the horse of a different color?"

Regina can only stare at the woman as her eyes take in the specks of sea green she finds hidden inside the golden sheath of Emma's eyes.

 _You're doing the staring thing again, Regina .._

 _Emma, what's your tattoo of?_

She shrugs as she studies it some more. _It's a flower._

 _Yes, but what kind of flower?_

 _A lyon .. I got it when I was young, Regina .. it's silly -_

Regina's eyes widen in alarm. _Emma, you have a lyon tattoo?!_

Emma shrugs and glances back down at her wrist and she barely has a chance to look back up before Regina is there, pulling her in and kissing her. The red and gray colors swirl around them, pushing against them, trying to break them apart but both women grip the other's waist, drawing themselves closer as Fate and the Universe slam against each other, crackling like thunder. Lightning begins to flash and Henry's scarf gets picked up from the ground, the wind twirling it around Regina and Emma as their lips linger on the other's and Emma's hand reaches up to cup the back of Regina's neck. The dream catcher earring dips along Emma's tattoo, scratching the center of the flower and all goes black.

~sqsqsqsq~

Both women open their eyes to the sound of Henry's voice calling their names and a rough shake along each of their shoulders. Emma manages to sit up first and her eyes take in the area around her. The swirling sea of red and gray is gone, the air is clear and quiet once more as she feels Regina stir and sit up next to her. She reaches for the older woman's hand and is comforted when she feels the familiar warmth radiate from their joined touch.

Henry is staring at them as well as Rumple and Belle. Snow and Charming are standing off to the side and there's a look inside their eyes, she just can't place. Regina nudges her and they help each other up as Henry barrels into them for a group hug, nearly knocking them back down again in the process.

"Moms! You did it!"

They both pull back then, confusion masked in each of their eyes as they look around the middle of main street again.

"We did?" Regina's voice is laced in wonder as she runs fingers through Henry's hair, pulling him in for another hug.

"Yeah, it's gone. And look!" Henry holds up the Prophecy book and the missing pages are no longer missing. "You guys so need to read this!"

Regina goes to grab the book but quickly looks at Emma. "Wait, are you okay? Are you .. " She magics a pair of shorts onto Emma and glances down at her legs, running fingertips along the curve of her thigh.

"Uh .. Regina .. " A light blush colors her cheeks as she glances around at the spectators watching this rather embarrassing moment. She taps Regina's shoulder to try and get her attention to no avail.

Henry covers his mouth to stifle a giggle at his mother's obvious discomfort.

Regina's eyes widen in amazement as she realizes the bruises are gone and as she glances at Emma, she also notices that she isn't sparkly anymore, that her hair is long and blonde once more and that there is in fact a very healthy rosiness to her cheeks.

Charming clears his throat and it's that noise alone that makes Regina catch on to why Emma is in fact blushing. She quickly replaces the shorts with a pair of blue jeans and mouths an, _I'm sorry_ to the woman.

Emma shrugs and stuffs her hands into her back pockets. "Hey, at least you magicked me jeans, my favorite comfort clothes." She shrugs again and leans into the brunette.

Henry chimes in, "Emma's okay, it's in the book .. we actually had it all wrong .. about the darkness and you guys just have to read it."

He sighs breathlessly and his eyes light up in amazement as everyone smiles at his young enthusiasm.

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina and Emma read the missing pages, curled up together on the couch, later that evening, with a warm fire sending a soft glow of shadows over the room. She reads the pages out loud as Emma gently twirls strands of her hair around a finger. She pauses on occasion as the feel of Emma's lips on her cheek or wrist or on the inside of a palm stills her. She gets to the last sentence and reads with bated breath, _"The Queen and her Dark Knight with True Love's kiss stemmed from free will and beyond the realms of the Universe will win the Final Battle against the ancient evils of Darkness. Aligning their own Fate and will for others."_

The echo of the book closing fills the room and both women's eyes catch as the powerful message washes over them. Emma kisses Regina's cheek before lightning the mood as she says, "So, to sum it up .. the darkness was never actually inside of me, like how we imagined. The black goo it swept me away and - "

"It was tethered to you. But yes, the black goo so to speak, it wasn't inside of you, it was - "

"Around me. So, when you summoned me back, it engulfed the town, but unseen to the naked eye and - "

"You were it's tether, your light magic was fighting it, and - "

"It was .. killing me because, well all magic comes with a price."

"That part, Rumple had right, correct. And you were the new Dark One."

"And the very last Dark One, thanks to our kiss .. " Emma dips her head shyly from Regina's intense gaze that is now hovering on her lips, "Which saved the day! Long live, Emma and Regina! Here .. here!"

Regina smacks her shoulder playfully and sighs as Emma pulls her into a hug. They hold each other for awhile, taking comfort in the others warmth before Emma eventually pulls away. "So, go on and say it .. come on, I know it's coming." She smirks at her and Regina's own eyes dance in mischief.

"Are you sure you can take it, Savior? Hmm?" She pokes Emma's side and Emma begins to tickle her, finding out real quick that the squirming woman is extremely ticklish along her stomach.

Her fingers are persistent in their ticklish path as Regina gasps for breath, her laughter filling the room, as she tries to speak, "I .. was .. right, Miss Swan .. all we had to do was .. kiss." Regina continues to laugh as both women's lips find the others and all tickling stops while hands begin to roam in new places as Regina falls back onto the couch, pulling Emma on top of her.

After a few minutes, Regina breaks away, to catch her breath when her eyes look up at Emma's. She brushes a few fallen strands of hair away from Emma's eyes and whispers against her lips, "I think I missed this color of sea green most of all, Emma."

"Really? Not my hair?" Her eyes narrow in question and Regina looks up at the ceiling in mock wonder.

"Well, maybe that was a _close_ second." Emma kisses her again, stealing the breath away once more from her and she sighs in content and happiness. After a moment, she reluctantly pulls away to ask, "Can you read my thoughts still?"

Emma shakes her head no and grins at the searing woman laying under her. "But kind of don't have to, I know what you are thinking, Madame Mayor." She winks at her.

"Quite sure of yourself, hmm, Sheriff?"

"Quite."

She nibbles on Emma's ear and whispers, "So, the guest bedroom lost it's appeal to you?"

A quiet, "Yes .. " is heard from Emma before both women are jumping off the couch and racing up the stairs.

~sqsqsqsq~

They spend the next several months hyped up in honeymoon bliss as the early stages of their relationship overshadow everything else. It's in the after glow of their lovemaking when they have their most intimate talks, about the future, adopting again, watching Henry grow into a man. These thoughts lead to all they have faced already, the confines of living in Storybrooke, being layered in magic and all the threats that can bring. They both share the same whispers of breath one night as both women ghost the same words along the other's lips, _Marry me._

And after the rushed excitement of, _Yes_ .. arises all the planning for their special day and it was during this time both women realized that they wanted to live in the world. A world that they had helped keep safe from the likes of the all tempting Fate and the strict confines of the Universe. They wanted to live in a land without magic and the pressure of happily ever afters.

The day of their wedding landed on Emma's birthday. And it marks the anniversary of when Regina and Emma and Henry were brought together.

 _The Trinity._

Of course, during the best woman's speech, Ruby had to make a joke that Fate couldn't have designed it better to which she got a death glare thrown at her by Regina. But aside from the jokes by the leggy waitress and the poetic spiel they had to endure from Snow White and the emotional Father and newly proclaimed daughter in law dance, Charming and Regina engaged in, the day went off without a hitch. Henry walked Regina down a path littered with rose petals, (an inside joke only Regina and Emma shared), to a beaming Emma, who was dressed in a tailored black tux that made Regina go weak in the knees. Regina wore a beautiful gown, fit for a queen (another one of Ruby's jokes) and it would turn out that magicking the dress and it's stunning color to match Emma's eyes would indeed be the last time she ever used magic.

Regina and Emma wrote special vows that they opted to whisper to one another after saying out loud the official vows, and both women's eyes shone with happiness and love as they kissed for the first time as each other's wives.

It was when Regina and Emma were sharing a dance together that Snow approached Henry with a mischievous glint in her eye. "So, Henry .. is this the vision you saw, when you touched the quill? Your mom's wedding dance?" Snow nudges his shoulder and Henry takes a quick sip of punch before his own eyes dance with mischief.

"I'll never tell, Grandma."

A few minutes later, Snow taps her wine glass and everyone's eyes fall to her as she says a few words and walks over to a covered object as Charming pulls the cloth away and exposes a wired cage to everyone. They all ooh and ahh as Snow, Henry and Charming release the dozen white doves and send them soaring high into the powdered blue sky.

As everyone watches the birds flap away, Henry's eyes fall to his mom's and to the light that radiates from the both of them and he smiles to himself, as the vision he had seen comes to life in front of his eyes.

~sqsqsqsq~

 _ **Ten years later ..**_

The early morning air feels good as it caresses them and both women pull the other closer, entwining legs and arms around another, as they sway on their hammock. Shadows begin to dance over their features from the rays of light filtering through under the canopy of trees that loom above them as the morning sun kisses the sky.

Emma nuzzles her face inside the crook of her wife's neck, her favorite place to fall asleep in and gently rubs the inner curve of her arm. The older woman sighs in content as she feels Emma's light touch graze her skin. She whispers softly into Emma's hair, "I love you, my Emma, always."

She knows when Emma is gone. Emma's last breath washes over her soul and a single thought echos around Regina as the birds begin to sing and a gentle breeze touches her face.

 _We were greater than a moment._

~sqsqsqsq~

 _"There are those who say fate is something beyond our command. That destiny is not our own, but I know better. Our fate lives within us, you only have to be brave enough to see it .. "_ \- Merida - ' Brave'


	14. Chapter 14

**A.N.** _I received a few messages on here, after the s5 finale aired, asking me if I could write a sequel and bring Emma back .._ ("If Hook can be brought back, why can't Emma?") _and it got me to thinking about things and then Regina and Emma started dancing with my muse again. I didn't realize how much I had missed this story .. missed writing this .. missed these two women, bantering inside my brain, so instead of writing a separate sequel, I decided to just carry on with CBTM, it appears this story isn't finished after all .. this chapter picks up exactly where Chapter 12 had left off .. Thank you to everyone who is going to read along and take this journey with me .. love to all. :)_

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina hears soft footsteps trailing through the grass and she quickly wipes her tears away, willing a smile to dawn her lips as she turns around in time to catch her little girl as she leaps into her lap.

"I'm sorry Mom, I .. I tried to keep her busy but she wanted - " Henry begins to explain.

"Mama .. I miss Mommy, can't she come home already. It's been a really _really_ long time now."

Gracie's bright smile makes her sad eyes twinkle and Regina feels her heart skip as it jumps inside her chest. She watches as Gracie pulls the necklace out that always lays hidden under Regina's shirt, and her daughter's fingers gently tug on the chain.

"Mommy said I can wear this when I'm bigger."

"Yes, sweetheart .. when you are all grown up, this is for you."

"You are keeping it safe for me .. by your heart. Just like Mommy. You keep her safe inside your heart."

Henry watches his Mom try her best to keep the tears in against the soft whisper of his sisters words. Brown eyes plead for Henry to take his sister as he nods his head at his Mom but Gracie's words cut in once more, filling the silence.

"Magic can bring Mommy back .. just like my book. I - "

"Gracie, what book?" Regina's eyes widen in alarm as they quickly find her daughters.

The little girl laughs softly and it sounds like a jingle of bells at Christmas time against Regina's ears, a lightness washes through her before she focuses on that one word again.

 _Book._

"Can we read it tonight? Together, Mama? Please?"

"Henry, what have you been - "

"Hey, I have no idea what she's talking about, we've been reading Harry Potter. Gracie, is that what you are talking about?"

"Nooo, Henry .. " She laughs again while tucking the necklace back under Regina's blouse before she jumps off of the woman's lap and traces Emma's name gently.

"The Story Book can bring Mommy back."

Regina and Henry's eyes catch as one word races through both their minds.

 _Storybrooke._

~sqsqsqsq~

"Mom .. please .. just calm down and think about this logically - "

"Logically? Oh yes, because there must be a _logical_ explanation for .. for that book to just appear in our god damn house!" Regina stops her pacing and quickly runs fingers through her hair before pulling it into a ponytail. "I'm doing what I should have done all along .. I'm - "

"What? What on earth are you going to do?"

"I can assure you Henry, Earth will have nothing to do with this."

"Mom, please .. you're not thinking clearly. Today is .. it's been a year and .. I miss her too. I admit it's - "

"Three books now, Henry .. three books that have just magically appeared in a way. First the book Snow gave you when you were a child .. and then the Prophecy book and now .. "

Henry puts his hands up and steps toward his mother. "Okay, so three .. like .. "

Regina's voice fills her bedroom in a whisper. "The Trinity."

Henry feels himself gulp as he takes a step forward, "Okay .. so .. how is this possible .. exactly? I mean, we are in a land without magic .. right?"

Regina closes her eyes and her fingertips find solace around Emma's necklace. "Mom? Right?" She opens up her eyes to find Henry's gaze bearing into her own, eyes sharp and crisp with wonder and dare she say, Hope.

Her voice catches softly as she whispers, "I don't know anymore .. I just .. " Her thoughts trail off as she brings Emma's necklace to her lips and she can feel a single tear slide down her cheek. Henry's hand squeezes her shoulder as he nods his head in understanding. His Mom doesn't have to voice the words out loud, he knows.

 _He wants Emma back too._

"Okay, so what do we - "

"Mama! My clock is stuck." The little six year old walks into her mother's bedroom with her Tinkerbell alarm clock tucked underneath one arm as she pulls her favorite blanket along the floor. Regina pays no mind to the clock as she picks up her little girl and hugs her close, brushing a quick kiss along her temple. "Gracie, why must you insist on dragging your blanket all over the house?" She sighs as her daughter giggles against her cheek.

"Mommy liked it, she always said, I was helping you sweep. Silly, Mama." Gracie shakes her head at Regina and the older woman can't help but smile at her baby girl.

Henry chuckles as he comes up beside his Mom and sister and gently tugs on Gracie's ear. "Yeah, silly Mama, indeed." Both of Regina's children laugh and she pretends to narrow her eyes in anger as she says, "Don't encourage, please."

"Yeah, Henry, don't encourage." Gracie tries her best to mimic her mother's voice as her eyes twinkle in mischief and Regina can't help but see Emma shining through. She hugs her daughter closer to her chest before carrying her back to bed.

"Alright, sweetheart, time to sleep now." She tries to cover the squirming child but Gracie wriggles free and points to the alarm clock, Regina has just placed on her wooden night stand.

"Mama, fix Tink .. please." She remembers to add her manners and she is proud of herself.

Regina's attention finally gets placed toward the broken clock and the numbers begin to blur as her eyes try to focus once more. She can't believe what she is seeing. Henry raps on the outside of the bedroom door and comes in to say goodnight to his little sister, like he had promised to do before heading out to his own apartment. He had somehow managed to convince his mother to let this go for the night and they would discuss the book .. magic .. all of it, first thing in the morning. Today had been an emotional rollercoaster and all Henry wanted to do was lay his head down and sleep the rest of it away. He wanted that for all of them actually.

"Henry! I remembered to say please .. " Gracie laughs and claps her hands and then points back to her clock, "Tink is still broke." He looks over at the clock and he does a double take as his eyes rake over where the little and big golden arrows on the fairy have stopped.

Regina manages to tear her gaze away and her eyes find Henry's before she picks up the device with a trembling hand. Gracie begins to jump on the bed, dancing with her favorite stuffed animal, Patches the Rabbit, as Regina and Henry both whisper the frozen time out loud in a rushed breath.

 ** _8:15_**

~sqsqsqsq~

 **A.N.** _I_ _know this chapter was short .. it did help to get my muse kick started again .. it's been a year, and I am a little rusty .. bare with me. More to come .. I listened to,_ Down by Jason Walker _for this chapter .._


	15. Chapter 15

**A.N.** _I listened to_ Stop and Stare by One Republic _for this chapter .._

~sqsqsqsq~

 **8:15**

The numbers begin to blur together from Regina staring at them so long and she faintly feels fingers nudging her shoulder. When she does tear her gaze away from the haunting clock, she finds Henry staring at her and she can see a thousand questions running through his eyes.

"I have to make a phone call." She turns and leaves the room abruptly and Henry is left just standing there in shock.

He feels Gracie grab his hand and tug him toward the clock, her voice fill of impatience as she states, "Henry, I really want my Tink fixed!"

He sighs softly and points to her pillow before saying sternly, "Only if you get into bed and shut your eyes, little one. Come on, scoot." He watches as his little sister nods excitedly and jumps up onto her bed, pulling the covers up and over herself. She shuts her eyes for a moment and then peeks one eye out, and grins at Henry before closing her lid again.

He smiles quietly to himself and goes to fetch a pair of fresh batteries for Tinkerbell.

~sqsqsqsq~

"Maybe, it's just all a really big coincidence, Mom .. I mean - "

"And the book? That's a coincidence too?" She scoffs at her son and he rolls his eyes back at her.

"I'm just trying to keep a fresh perspective here, because you .. aren't."

"Excuse me, Henry - "

"No, Mom, look .. what about the support group you've been going to? Maybe you should call Marie and - "

"Henry .. I have to go. I have to - "

He slams his fist down on the kitchen table and his chair gets angrily pushed back as he stands up quickly. "You are so stubborn and just being foolish about - "

"Henry Daniel Swan-Mills! You - "

"And selfish! You're just gonna leave Gracie behind to what? Go play God? And worse maybe make a deal with the devil himself all over again. You can't trust Gold .. no matter what nonsense he told you over the phone. He's not to be trusted."

Regina walks to her son and wipes the tears she doesn't even think he is aware has fallen down his cheeks as she pulls him close. "Do you want me to take Gracie with me? Snow and David would love to see her and she would be safe - "

"Are you even listening to yourself?" Henry pushes her away now, and his eyes are so raw, so on fire as he takes in his mother. "Ma would be furious with you, _furious_ if she knew you took Gracie to Storybrooke. She chose to .. she chose to die instead of going back there of all places, how can you just disregard _all_ of that for - " He stops because his mother is now sitting on the floor, in the corner of their kitchen, with her face buried in between clasped knees, sobbing hysterically.

And he feels awful and his gut is twisting and his heart is breaking. With each anguished cry he hears, another piece of his heart gets shattered and pierces his now burning lungs. He runs out of the room, out of the house, leaving the screen door flapping behind him as his feet find purchase along the grass. He stops at the edge of the hammock, a place he knows his mother has not been able to touch, look at, grasp since the day they lost Ma.

 _Emma. Their savior. Their hope. Their light. Their love._

He blindly rubs his eyes, wiping the tears away and he lies on the twisted swing made up of soft hay and twine. He stares up at the night sky and lets himself get lost in trying to count the stars. His coping mechanism.

His eyes widen in alarm as he registers a fresh weight land by his side, lightly swinging the hammock to and fro and he feels his mom curl up alongside him. He listens to her soft cries, echoing against his chest and he knows without a shadow of a doubt, he has to let her go. He has to give her permission to do this. His blessing because if he doesn't, all of this will just destroy her and his family.

"Okay .. go. I'll watch, Gracie." He feels his mother rise up and he opens his eyes to look into hers. "But you better come back to me, don't you dare die .. too." His words falter at the end and he feels new tears begin to fall from the corner of his eyes as his mother cups his face and brings a gentle kiss to his temple.

"I promise, my trusted, Prince."

~sqsqsqsq~

They tell Gracie, she is going away for business. Well, they _try_ and tell the bright child that but as Regina begins to zip up a suitcase, she quickly feels her hand stopped by her daughters and Gracie is doing her best to shove the newly acquired story book into the bag.

"Good luck, Mama .. I love you bunches." And Regina captures her daughter as she jumps into her arms. The woman's heart clenches inside her chest and for a moment she wonders, just what in the world is she actually doing? Or thinking for that matter? And then her eyes catch the time that is showing on her alarm clock and the numbers, **8:15** gleam back at her. It's all the affirmation she needs to guide her feet toward Storybrooke, Maine, once more.

~sqsqsqsq~


	16. Chapter 16

**A.N.** _This chapter is sad .. I'm sorry .. it will get better .. I promise. I listened to,_ Last Train Home by Ryan Star _for this one .._

 _((hugs)) to all ..._

~sqsqsqsq~

 _Storybrooke - Present Time -_

Regina drives over the town line and she feels the familiar warmth pulse through her. Her fingertips begin to tingle and her head feels light as the rush of magic courses through her. She grips the steering wheel tight and her eyes quickly fall to the picture that is propped up inside the dash. Emma's smiling face gleams back at her and she finds herself pressing down on the gas pedal.

She pulls up alongside the curb, outside Gold's and climbs out of the rental. She grabs the picture of her smiling Emma, sliding it into the back pocket of her black jeans before she closes the car door and glances up at the rustic shop.

"Regina?"

She feels her body tense up at the sound of her name. She was hoping to make it into the shop unnoticed but of course, that wouldn't be in the cards. This town is just too damn small for that. She turns around and her eyes catch the person standing in front of her. "Hello, Snow."

Snow's eyes widen as she looks past the older woman, into the car. "Are you alone? Where's - "

Regina finds herself glancing back at the parked car as well, like she needs the added look to confirm it even though she already knows the answer.

"Yes, I am." She turns and realizes Snow has taken a few steps forward and is now standing directly in front of her. She wants to make a snide comment about personal space but then memories begin to invade her mind of a time held before, a time she would give anything to experience once more. Images of Emma stepping toward her, challenging her, makes her heart ache and a sadness wash through her soul. She realizes the air smells the same, everything _looks_ exactly the same as the day, her, Emma and Henry had left but there's something not right. There is a void here and it feels as wide as the grand canyon itself, if not bigger.

"I don't understand, where are the children? Why are - "

"Well, Henry is hardly a child anymore .. he - "

"Hmm, well, maybe if I had gotten to see my grandson more than just - "

"I'm not doing this now .. good day, Snow." Regina begins to walk around the front of the car.

"Of course, walk away, Regina .. lord knows it's what you do best. Why are you even here?!" She yells.

Regina stops and she turns slowly, letting her brown eyes fall to Snow's. "Emma .. I'm here for Emma." She turns and begins to walk again but only makes it a few steps before she feels herself being spun around.

"You're here for my daughter?!" Snow's eyes are wide and the color of steel as Regina feels herself being pushed. "How dare you?! You should have been here two years ago!" The slap catches Regina off guard as it stings her cheek. Her eyes grow wide and she takes a step back from Emma's mother.

"You could have saved her! You let her die - "

"I know! She didn't .. I couldn't .. I was wrong, okay! I should have dragged her back here .. I should have .. " She leans forward, her hand grasping the hood of the car as she begins to cry, tears falling down her face, mixing in a trail with black mascara as she sits down on the curb and buries her face against raised knees. Snow can only stand and stare at this woman, a woman that is definitely nothing like the Regina she once knew. She feels her own tears begin to fall as she watches her daughter in law have a complete emotional break down. Her heart shatters inside her chest as she listens to the agonizing cries and she realizes, Regina is barely holding on. She needs help, not ridicule, not misplaced anger, she feels awful for lashing out at the one person who loved her daughter more than anything.

Regina hears soothing words being brushed by her ear as arms encircle her and she falls into the warm embrace. She allows Snow to hold and comfort her.

~sqsqsqsq~

 _Puerto Rico - One year ago -_

It is raining the day they bury Emma. The skies are full of dark gray clouds that swirl above them as they stand around the grave. Regina is holding their little girl, close to her chest as Henry holds up an umbrella with one hand and wipes tears away with the other. Snow and Charming are holding onto each other, letting the rain fall on top of them, raindrops that neither one even feels at the moment. Archie is there as well, trying his best to hold back the tears. He has been a trusted confidant to Regina and Emma through the years and he had promised Emma he would stay and be here for Regina after she was gone. She trusted him to be a shoulder, Regina could grieve on. 'A sage of wisdom', that's what Emma would often call him as he smiles softly to himself, remembering conversations he had with his friend. As he shuffles under his umbrella he steals a glance at Regina and her children and he wonders how he is supposed to help her when he is mourning Emma too.

~sqsqsqsq~

The day ends how it began. With tears and yelling. Regina and Snow White once again at each other's throats for an entirely different reason in this realm than from the other time, long ago.

"I just don't understand why you won't come back home now! You should be with us, your family!"

" _Emma_ is my family!"

"Oh yes, we are well aware how isolated you kept her from _us_!"

"Excuse me?! You need to let that jealousy train of yours finally stop at the station, Snow White .. it's getting absurd and just downright cruel - "

"Cruel? Oh, that is rich, the Evil Queen using the word, _cruel!"_ The bedroom door slams shut and Regina is left standing outside in her hallway, staring at the wood grained polish. She has half a mind to fling the door open and march herself into the guest bedroom, giving Emma's mother a piece of her mind but then Emma's name alone stops her thought pattern and she crumples to the floor. This is how Archie finds her a few minutes later, with tears running down her face and the light completely gone from her eyes.

"Come on, Regina .. let's get you to bed. You don't want Gracie seeing you like this and she'll be out of the bath soon."

Regina registers the words he is saying as she stops in her doorway and looks toward Gracie's room. "Whose giving her a bath?" She feels like the world's worst mother because she has no idea who is taking care of her child right now as her eyes plead up at Archie's.

He smiles warmly at her, trying to comfort her as best he can. "Henry is. He's going to put her to bed, it's okay."

She nods once and walks into her bedroom, kicking off her shoes and untucking the blouse from her skirt. She stares at the bed for a moment, lost in thought before she turns around and faces her friend. "Can you just put them up in a hotel, please, Archie .. I just can't deal with her right now. I know she is grieving but I am .. too." She begins to cry again and Archie watches as the once regal woman climbs up onto the bed, and buries her face into a pillow.

He backs out of the room slowly, quietly saying, "Sure, Regina .. I'll take care of it." He closes the door and his eyes catch Henry's as he is coming out of Gracie's room. He shakes his head at Henry and beckons for him to follow down the stairs.

~sqsqsqsq~

 _Storybrooke - Present Time -_

Regina is still feeling numb and hollow as she finds herself sitting at Snow's kitchen table. Her eyes feel puffy and stiff from crying and it's honestly nothing she's not used to, she's had these intense crying fits before, just always in the comfort of her own surroundings. Certainly not on a sidewalk in Storybrooke and in front of Snow White of all people.

She takes a sip of the freshly steeped tea and allows the sweet taste to soothe her nerves. She feels Snow sit down across from her and she can't bring her eyes to meet the woman's as she decides to focus instead on her fingertip and the path it's tracing around the rim of a mug.

Snow clears her throat, taking her own sip of tea and waits for Regina to look at her. Eventually brown eyes glance up and she begins to talk. "A book appeared in our home recently. Gracie told Henry and I about it at the .. cemetery, it was the anniversary .. " Snow reaches across the table and squeezes Regina's hand. "I have it with me, I can show you, if you want to see it .. maybe I am losing my mind, or I have already lost my mind? I don't really know anymore but something else happened too .. Gracie's clock stopped working, and it was frozen on .. " She looks away from Snow, she needs a moment to collect her thoughts.

"8:15?"

Regina's eyes grow wide and bright before she nods once at the other woman. "How - " Snow grabs her hand and pulls her up, guiding her to the loft's window. She points for her to look at the view and Regina leans against the windowsill, peering out. Her eyes focus on the clock and it's frozen time.

 **8:15**

She gasps and takes a step back almost right into Snow who has to put a hand out to stop her movement. "The clock stopped here on the anniversary as well. I thought .. I thought it was just a really strange coincidence. I don't really believe in - "

"Hope anymore?" Regina whispers.

Snow steals a glance back at the clock. "Yes."

~sqsqsqsq~


	17. Chapter 17

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"So, another book? How quaint." He takes in the title and his dark eyes find Regina's before leaving the woman's sharp gaze and leafing through the pages.

"No games, Rumple. I need help and I am willing to admit that so - "

"So, nothing. I told you a long time ago, Regina .. the rules. Magic cannot bring someone back from the dead. Magic can do much, but not that." He shuts the book and slides it toward her across the counter top that separates the two of them.

"I'm well aware. But what if - "

His eyes fall downcast for a moment, his voice wavering just a little as he says, "She's gone, Regina." A quiet moment ticks by before he regains his composure and straightens his posture once more. "I'm sorry." He turns to head back through the musty curtain but Regina's words stop his movement.

"What aren't you telling me?" Her eyes narrow as she leans against the glass counter top, fingers gripping the edges turning her knuckles white. She watches as his back tenses, stretching his pristine gray suit across his frame before he turns around to face her again.

"When we talked on the phone you led me to believe - "

"To believe nothing! I - "

"Stop cutting me off! You told me there was a possibility _this_ .. " She pauses to point toward the book, " .. could very well mean _something_. And the time stopping, which come to find out has stopped _here_ as well! So, do not stand there and mock me, Rumplestiltskin. You know something and you damn well better say it or so help me I will roast you like a pig!"

He watches as her eyes grow almost black in color and he recognizes the familiar tell tale signs of the Evil Queen swirling up inside of her, just waiting for a chance to escape if she so easily chooses. He inches back to his previous spot and puts his hands up in surrender.

"Emma is the product of True Love. She was born the Savior. She came to this world with magic." He pauses and let's the last part float between the two of them, waiting to see if Regina catches on and after a moment, she does.

"She had magic." Her voice is a mere whisper in the air as she watches Rumple nod his head once.

"Outside of Storybrooke .. she had magic. How could I .. how did I not .. " She begins to pace around the shops open space, the small trinkets vibrating lightly from her brisk movements. "I mean, of course. That's why the clock even started working again in the first place, when Henry brought her here .. and the mine caving in when she officially took on the Deputy role. Graham remembering .. it was her magic weakening the curse." She stops now, her mind racing with images and memories from over a decade ago as she looks up at her once mentor and he watches as the tears begin to slowly fall from sad brown eyes.

"She could have healed herself .. couldn't she, outside of Storybrooke?" She asks but she knows the answer even before Rumple nods his head slowly at her. She knows and she feels her heart slice and shatter inside her chest. She crumples to the floor and leans her head back against the shelf casing. The glass unicorn mobile that was made for Emma as a baby begins to sway and sparkle and Regina and Rumples eyes burn wide as saucers.

The mobile is right above Regina, from where she had fallen and she quickly springs to her feet. She reaches up to touch one of the unicorns despite Rumple warning her against it. The smooth glass instantly calms her as her skin makes contact and a rush of warmth pulses through her. She recognizes the feeling instantly.

 _Emma._

It's been a year since she has felt Emma's love beat inside of her like this. One long agonizing year and she has to fight the urge to rip the baby module down and hug it to her chest. As she runs her fingertip along another gleaming unicorn she knows her mind is made up. She is bringing Emma back no matter the cost. No matter the price.

She turns to face Rumple, her gaze sharp and fierce as brown eyes lock onto his and he finds himself taking a step back as she asks, "So, this underworld .. how do I get there?"

~sqsqsqsq~

"Regina .. maybe you should call Henry first and - "

"And tell him? Oh wait, I know .. Hi honey, oh yes, everything is fine, just taking a small trip to the Underworld, gonna bargain with Hades for Emma's soul and I'll be right quick home after that. Just like a bunny, as Gracie would say. Don't wait up, dear." Regina rolls her eyes as she turns away from the window and her intense gazing at the stilled Clock.

David rubs the back of his neck as he looks between his wife and daughter in law before interjecting, "Well, maybe we should go over this book again .. see if there's anything we missed?"

He nods his head in encouragement hoping he can convince the stubborn woman to concede but she walks past him and flips open the book, pointing to where the story ends.

They all watch as ripped edges appear along the seam and Regina's eyes light up with determination.

"Missed pages, David .. like the last book. Only this time, _my_ touch triggers it, since I touched those unicorns and felt Emma's magic. We all know what this means. Mine and Emma's story is not over. The book talks about the Queen going to the Underworld in search of her Princess and now there are missing pages .. I am going. End of discussion."

"Well, you aren't going alone. No way."

"Don't be ridiculous. Yes I am." She goes to walk past him but he blocks her path, crossing determined arms over his chest.

"David, all due respect, I can magically poof myself out of here, I don't technically have to use _that_ door you are so adamantly blocking." She rolls her eyes at the man who has become a part of her family.

He rolls his eyes back as he points a finger in his wife's direction. "She's our daughter, we are going. Neil isn't a baby anymore, he can - "

Regina steps forward and places a hand over his cheek. "I have to do this alone, David. Please, respect that. I know she is your daughter and you love her but the book clearly is about me and Emma. The Queen and The Princess .. not, The Queen, The Princess and her Charming Parents."

She smiles warmly at him, rubbing her thumb quickly across his smooth skin before pulling her hand away and brushing a few fallen tears from under her eyes. David nods once, finding Snow's gaze and she agrees, nodding back as she quickly pulls Regina into a hug. The regal woman accepts the gesture, wrapping her own arms tightly around Emma's mother before David joins in and turns it into a group hug.

She chuckles lightly as all three of them disengage, wiping their respective tears away before she says, "Enough of this .. I have a realm to catch."

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	18. Chapter 18

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Regina meets Gold at the designated spot and she sighs heavily when she realizes he is not alone.

"What is this? A wishing well inquisition?" She scoffs as she stares down the other woman.

"Regina, we need to talk before you .. " Belle glances at the well before continuing, " .. try to leave this land behind."

Brown eyes turn a shade darker as they take in Belle's determined gaze. "I don't have time for this." She goes to move past the mild mannered woman but Belle's grip on her arm stops her cold.

"It's important that I tell you this. You know I wouldn't be here otherwise." Belle's tone is enough to convince the stubborn woman to listen. "Rumple filled me in on the new story book and - "

"Well, the cliff notes version." Rumple chimes in with a snicker and both women roll their eyes before Belle presses on.

"So, I did some research on this Underworld and .. it's dangerous Regina. Extremely dangerous and you might not have your magic once there, there's rivers filled with lost souls, unable to touch, not to mention Hades, the Lord who masterminds it all and there's also .. something else no one seems to be bringing up - "

"The proverbial .. elephant in the room." Rumple chimes in once more as he waves his hand through the air, locking eyes with Regina's.

She tugs her black coat tighter around herself before landing her gaze back onto Belle's, beckoning with wide eyes for the younger woman to continue.

"Well, fine yes, elephant in the room .. I think you need to prepare yourself for what the true outcome might be in regards to all of this, Regina."

"Outcome? I'm sorry I don't follow you, Belle .. there's only one outcome .. one goal, save Emma."

"But you already did that Regina. True love's kiss saved her eleven years ago, dissolved the darkness and you two destroyed the ancient evils of the Dark One. You outwitted Fate and realigned the Universe. You restored free will for all. Including for you and Emma .. she could have tried healing herself but she chose to not use magic. She _chose_ to live a normal life and all the risks and outcomes that can entail."

Regina's heart begins to beat loud and fast inside her chest. She can hear the erratic rhythm echoing inside of her and she has to lean against the well for support as the trees around her begin to sway and the ground under her feet starts to shake. She closes her eyes, shutting away the sad blue gaze staring back at her. She tries to remember to just breathe. In and then out. Deep breaths as she finds something to focus her mind on. Something solid and real as she fights against the all too familiar panic.

Belle's voice is a whisper against Regina's inner turmoil. "She might just need help .. moving on."

Rumple watches as Regina tries to keep her composure as she struggles with this all consuming grief. He can only stand and stare at this woman who is the farthest thing from the evil queen that he's ever seen her to be. He recognizes Regina from old; from a time when taking an innocents life would have shattered her. A time before he helped steer darkness and hatred inside her heart. This woman has lost much and he finds his own heart aching for her.

"Regina .. maybe I should go with you, or if not me, then Snow - "

"No .. I go alone." She raises her head and focused eyes lock onto Rumples once again. "If Emma .. if she needs help moving on then .. it needs to come from me." She nods her head once in Belle's direction before she turns her attention to the well. She waves her hand over the opening, shutting her eyes slowly as a touch of light magic cascades through her body and the water that lies deep in the well begins to rise slowly upward. The cool water stills when it touches her fingertips and she guides the desired feeling of what she needs to accomplish across her mind and through her heart. She lets it whisper a kiss to her soul and only then does she allow it to fall inside her magic.

She begins to chant softly, an unearthing spell. One laced in Elfish. She dips her left hand inside the well until her palm touches the cool surface of the water. She opens her eyes and her wedding ring begins to sparkle as the water starts to swirl and shimmer slowly. She removes her left hand and unclasps the piece of jewelry held around her neck.

 _Emma's necklace._

She brings it to her lips, kissing the warm metal softly before she dips it into the well and makes a wish.

Belle and Rumple stand back along a tree lined wooden path, watching as a cloud of smoke appears blurring Regina from their vision. The soft lavender color slowly shifts to a funnel of bold royal blue and when the smoke finally fades, Regina is gone.

~sqsqsqsq~

 _"No! Don't!"_

 _"You've worked too hard to have your happiness destroyed!"_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"Look at all this potential inside of you and you've been wasting it .. "_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"You thought we were friends?"_

 _"Crazy, right?"_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _" .. it doesn't sound much like a happy ending .. "_

 _"It's not .. my gift to you is good memories .. a good life for you and Henry .. "_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"Regina .. Regina!"_

 _"Emma .. "_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"What do you think, Emma?"_

 _"I think we need to talk to our son."_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"Everyone looks at me as the Evil Queen .. let me die as Regina .. "_

 _"Regina .. please .. "_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"You see me as a villain, Miss Swan but that is just your perception and you're wrong .. "_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"What the hell are you doing?"_

 _"Picking apples .. "_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"You might have given birth to him but he is MY son!"_

 _~sqsqsqsq~_

 _"You're Henry's birth mother?"_

 _"Hi .. "_

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina opens her eyes and a sharp blast of sunlight instantly makes her close them again. A dull pain shoots across the back of her skull and a wave of nausea washes through her. She slowly opens her eyes again, trying to let her vision adjust to the fresh dose of brightness. She takes in her surroundings and quickly realizes she's still in Storybrooke as she rises to her feet. Another zap of pain slams against the inside of her skull and she winces slightly.

 _Lovely, a magical hangover, just what she needs._

For a moment or two she thinks the spell didn't work but then as she begins to walk away from the sun kissed stone well she notices a slight difference in all the colors that surround her. There is a dimness to all the assorted shades. The trees, the dirt, and yes even the sky is dulled. Almost as if someone has ran the color gray over everything, like a fine gloss. The town smells different as well, she thinks. She tries to familiarize herself with the scent and the hint of ashes come to mind.

 _Ashes and stale ale._

She has a memory gallop through her of when she had opened up that Tavern door back in the Enchanted Forest. The Tavern that Tink had guided her to and she thinks, yes, that is the smell she is remembering before she had quickly shut that twist of fate for herself.

She shakes her head before a new thought pops inside her mind.

 _Gracie's alarm clock. Tinkerbell._

Could the Fairy be guiding her once more? She feels a shiver run down her spine and she tightens her black peacoat around herself and continues her trek out of the woods. As she finds her way back onto paved road she realizes the sun shining above is offering no warmth, no heat and as she looks up into the cloudless sky, her eyes widen when she discovers she can in fact stare straight into the glowing circle of light. She quickly looks for her shadow along the ground but alas, there isn't one. So, it's an illusion? She squints her eyes in wonder and quickly figures out, there are no flowers blooming anywhere in the barren fields that lay off to her right. There is no grass and the trees stand tall and bare.

 _Lifeless._

She instantly feels a sting of anger rush through her. Emma doesn't belong here. Why would she be here? It doesn't make any sense. She was made up of light and love, a true Savior. A hero. She can't be here! Regina's thoughts are scattered inside her mind, beating along with an increasing heart beat as she finds herself standing outside this realm's version of Granny's Diner.

Memories flood her once more of them all running into the Diner after she had summoned Emma, The new Dark One, eleven years ago and another shiver finds her again as she raises her head and marches up the steps to the homey establishment.

When the little bell chimes announcing her arrival, all heads turn her way before a bellowing voice looms from a corner booth, "Darling .. how nice to see another gorgeous face." Cruella's evil smirk beams back at her as Regina's eyes meet the fur loving woman's gaze.

She waves Regina over with a quick flash of a hand as she inhales a hit from her long cigarette. The exhaling smoke rises and curls between the two women as Regina sits down at the table.

"So, due tell, darling .. I'm all ears for this wonderful little tale."

"Tale?"

Cruella rolls her eyes before flicking an ash off the tip of her smoke. "What did you in, dear?" She asks, eyes widening with delight and wonder.

"Nothing, I'm not dead. I - "

The woman's laughter stops Regina's train of thought, her mouth closing with a snap and eyes narrowing in frustration as she listens to the rowdy howls coming from the different patrons grouped around the room.

"You here that lovelies? Regina here, thinks she's not _dead_." More laughter erupts and Regina hates every single one of them. She would gladly kill them all herself if they, well .. weren't already dead, she muses.

"Hades is gonna have a field day with you." Cruella grins again, a wide smile stretching over her lips before she grinds her cigarette out. "Oh yes, he will." She sing songs as she stands up and whips a mink coat around herself. "Ta ta for now, darling." She glides across the room, hips lightly swaying, head held high, not bothering to make eye contact with anyone else as she finds her way to the exit. She quickly turns back and looks at Regina before casually saying with a voice dripping in sweetness, "I'm sure Emma will be pleased to see you, I'm afraid she just might be the only one, however. I hope for your sake she can protect you in this world like it appears she had to in every other." Her eyes dance in content as she sees the desired effect her words have on the other woman and her laugh can still be heard as the door bangs loudly behind her.

Regina is so caught up with the sea of emotions that have taken root inside herself that she doesn't register the person who is now sitting in the spot Cruella had just discarded.

"Pay her no mind, love .. she's a bit of a bitch that one is."

Regina's eyes snap open and she comes face to face with Killian Jones.

 _Hook._

"Bet you're wondering what a devilishly handsome man like me is doing here, right?"

"Well, you got the devilish part correct, everything else not so much." Regina can't help but feel a bit of or okay, more than a _bit_ of jealousy course through her veins at the all important new knowledge that Hook is here and so is her wife. She doesn't like this coincidence, no not at all.

"How long have you been here, Hook?" And then a new thought crashes against her and she asks, "Are you even dead or are you - "

"Here for Emma, like you are?" The man watches as Regina's dark eyes narrow and he quickly puts his one good hand up. "Just a little humor, love, to lighten things up a bit, aye? And to answer your question, I am in fact dead. Have a sort of moving on to do, despite Hades detesting that bit of acceptance. So - "

"Hades? Bit of acceptance? I don't have time for games, Hook. Do you .. know where Emma is? Have you .. seen her?" Warm brown eyes plead.

Hook notices the dip in Regina's tone with the last inquiry and there is a very strong part of him that wants to try and goad the woman sitting across from him. To poke and play with her like a cat would a mouse but he decides against it. He takes comfort in the mere knowledge that Regina does in fact have a certain level of insecurity where he and Emma are concerned, despite all the years that have indeed passed. This information warms his belly like a small nip of rum would as he finds himself smiling at the woman and grabbing her hand; beckoning her to stand.

"Come on .. I'll take you to her."

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	19. Chapter 19

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Regina walks a few paces behind Hook, barely registering the shops that line main street before she almost slams right into the man's back as he comes to a halt. She lifts her hands to steady herself as her eyes watch the children pass by her under the one and only traffic light.

Hook tips his head at the female crossing guard and Regina rolls her eyes at the flirtatious gesture. "Can we try and stay focused, Captain?"

He shrugs off a smile as his eyes catch Regina's before replying, "It's a small town, your majesty. Nothing wrong with being friendly. Besides that there is Helen, Milah's friend, them two were right close chums before Milah moved on and - "

"So, you know about people moving on from here? How they can accomplish it?" Regina asks.

Hook stops and studies the woman for a moment, considering her questioning and just how much he should actually divulge. He slowly nods his head toward her and says, "Aye, love .. I know enough." He leaves his reply there, laying thick in the air between them as he turns and begins to walk again.

Regina watches as his black leather covered frame gets further away from her line of sight and she wonders if she should trust him. Maybe it's a trap after all. What if Emma isn't even really here and the spell somehow went horribly wrong? She begins to panic, turning and taking a few steps in the opposite direction, away from the dastardly Pirate. She quickly slips her hands inside her coat pockets and Emma's necklace brushes against her fingertips. She closes her eyes and feels her breathing begin to relax again after feeling the smooth chain.

She takes the piece of jewelry out from it's hiding spot and clasps it once again around her neck before she feels a cool spark of metal grace her shoulder, turning her around.

"Are we having second thoughts?" Hook's dark eyes tease as he smiles at her. He takes in the woman's stiff posture and narrowed eyes and a lightbulb goes off in his head. "Ah, you don't trust me. I see. Fair enough. But I can assure you, Emma is here and in _that_ direction, Regina." He points his hook in the direction that lies in front of the woman. He waits a moment and when she doesn't budge an inch, he rubs his scruffy chin and sighs heavily.

"Alright, what the bloody hell do you want to know?"

She takes a step forward and asks, "Why is Emma even here to begin with?"

"I have no idea .. but she is .. struggling. Has been ever since she arrived and - "

"Wait, so you were already here when she got here and for a whole year she's - "

"Yes, and it hasn't been a year. Time doesn't exist in the Underworld. We have no concept of Time here, love. None."

Regina's eyes widen as she takes this information in and he waits for the next question already knowing what is coming. "And she is struggling? How so? Because she needs help moving on?"

Brown eyes twinkle with unshed tears and Hook puts a hand along the woman's back, softly guiding her forward. "Come on, love .. I promise to explain better when I get you there. You need to see it for yourself first."

~sqsqsqsq~

They come upon 108 Mifflin Street and Regina stops dead in her tracks. The wrought iron gate is off it's hinge and the sidewalk leading up to the porch is riddled in cracks. The once pristine white washed Mansion is now painted a dull gray and the front door is black. The golden curved 108 numbers are no where to be seen. She turns to look at Hook and he beckons her forward.

She pulls her black coat tighter around herself and goes to knock on the heavy door before Hook grips her wrist and stops her. "No need for that, Regina .. she won't hear it." He pushes open the unlocked door and says, "Come on, in we go."

Glass instantly crunches under the weight of their feet and the sound echoes around them. Regina quickly takes in her surroundings and she gasps. For it's not the inside of her old mansion she is looking upon. No, not at all, she thinks. Her eyes take in the wide open living room with the sky blue painted walls and she quickly swirls around, eyes dark and blazing as they zone in on the Pirate. "What is the meaning of this?! I knew you were just playing games, Hook! How dare you - " She raises her hand to slap the man but he is quicker and his hook stops her swift movement. He drops her hand away and takes a step back just for safe measure.

"Regina, please think about this for a moment. Have I ever been inside your home? The home you shared with Emma and your children? How would I be able to conjure all of this?" He waves his hook around in a circle before crossing his arms across his chest.

The realization slams inside her chest, squeezing her heart as she says, "Emma did this? So, she can use magic here?" What goes unsaid but lays racing inside Regina's thoughts as she looks around the open room is the knowledge that Emma is freely using her magic here but yet she didn't want to use it to try and heal herself a year ago. A quiet anger begins to simmer inside Regina now and she tries her best to quell it before Hook answers her question. A question she had almost forgotten she had asked in the first place.

"Aye." He nods for Regina to follow him further into the house but Regina stands still and Hook sighs in frustration. "You know for someone who just dove head first into the underworld to see a certain pretty blonde you sure are lollygagging here, love."

Regina rolls her eyes and walks to a nearby fireplace, picking up a framed photograph that lays on the stone mantle. The picture is captivating. It is a shot of an apple tree, taken from a distance with a ground up perspective. The rays of sunlight filter through the leaves and shine a polished glow on all the red apples.

"Emma took that before .. "

Regina places the picture back where it was resting and turns to Hook. "Before?" She arches an eyebrow in his direction and he quickly diverts his gaze away.

"Before all of this happened." He waves his hand around the room and points toward all the broken glass.

"And what is all of this? And why is there a fireplace? We don't have a fireplace in our home so - "

"Emma added the fireplace, it can get a bit chilly here despite the sun being out and appearing all shiny and bright. Don't know if you noticed - "

"I noticed. The sun is .. "

"A prop I suppose is good a word as any. Doesn't provide any real warmth and at night the temperature can be frigid at times."

Regina has an image of Emma shivering and cold and her heart squeezes inside her chest as Hook begins to speak once more. "She took up taking pictures as a hobby before Hades pulled his nasty stunt. She would use her magic to grow things. Like that there apple tree or a field of wild flowers." He points to another picture clasped inside a frame and Regina studies the beauty Emma had caught within a camera lens.

"It's beautiful." She walks to it and runs her fingertips over the smooth glass feeling for a second Emma's warmth brush across her skin. She closes her eyes and whispers, "What aren't you telling me, Hook?"

The man looks away, running his good hand quickly through his hair. He knows he needs to fill Regina in and stop dragging his feet. He sighs again and squares his jaw tight before he says, "Hades wanted Emma to do his bidding and she refused so he retaliated. He .. put a spell on all the mirrors in the house so she could see .. well, you and Henry and your little girl .. Emma was helping people move on, she figured out how to accomplish that for the willing folks here and Hades didn't like that much either. So .. he hit her where he knew it would hurt. He wanted to gut her from the inside out and he did, Regina. He - "

Regina begins to shout for Emma. She runs out of the room, saying her name over and over and with each room she crosses without any sign of her wife she begins to panic and stumble until she makes her way into the far right room of their downstairs. In Puerto Rico it serves as their craft room, with wide bay windows that let in fresh sunlight all through out lazy cloudless days. Here, Emma has turned it into a make shift study where a plush chair with a matching ottoman sits nestled in a corner and she instantly knows this is where Emma goes to sit and read as her eyes take in a wall that is shelved top to bottom with books. She doesn't see Emma at first, not until she walks around the back of the sofa and her brown eyes snap quickly to Hook's.

"Hades put her under a sleeping curse!" Regina kneels down and she instantly brings her hands to caress Emma's face as tears begin to stream down her own cheeks.

"Not exactly. That there is Emma passed out drunk."

And then Regina sniffs in the scent of alcohol. "The room smells like a goddamn brewery! What the hell did you do to my wife?!" She stands, eyes blazing in a sea of ebony and a fireball quickly emerges and rests right above her palm.

"Okay, yeah, magic is emotion alright." Hook takes a step back from the blistering inferno. "Don't really want to feel that specific burn, love so - "

"How do you know that? Who told you about magic being emotion?"

"I did." Regina swirls around facing the new voice that has entered the room and her eyes glaze over in a litany of rushed feelings.

 _Confusion. Sorrow. Wonder. Fear._

"Mother?"

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	20. Chapter 20

**A.N.** _This chapter was heartbreaking to muddle through .. Thank you for all the follows/favorites/reviews/thoughts for this story. It makes me smile and lifts me up. Thank you, Swen. Love to all ~_

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"Mother?" Regina takes a tentative step forward before she glances back toward her sleeping wife.

"Emma is quite the white knight, you chose well, darling." Cora smiles sweetly and Regina's brown eyes darken as they fall back toward her mother.

"You of all people do not get to insult my wife! She doesn't belong here and you damn well know it! Let me guess mother, you and Hades? Partners in crime, perhaps .. hmm?" Regina tilts her head to the side before she crosses her arms in front of her chest and waits for her mother's excuses.

Cora glances at Hook before asking softly, "You haven't told her?"

Regina's eyes fall from her mother's to Hooks before she asks through gritted teeth, "Tell me what?"

"Well, Regina .. sweetheart, I wasn't insulting your .. _wife_. I was being quite serious. She is - "

"Enough! I am not playing this game with you. Not again. Do you hear me?" Regina's eyes shine with unshed tears as she turns away from her mother and kneels before Emma once more. She begins to gently stroke her hair and as the blonde tresses slip through her fingertips she closes her eyes against the familiar caress. Emma's hair still feels like silk she thinks as she smiles down at her slumbering love before glancing up at the Pirate.

"If you're playing into my mother's games then you are a bigger fool than I thought you were, Captain."

"Regina, there is no game here, I can assure you of that. Your mother is actually .. on our side. She helped me get you here and - "

With that omission, Regina is back up on her feet and spinning around to face them both once again with a new fire in her eyes that Hook gulps at. He steals a glance at Cora and for a second he sees the same fear inside her eyes that he imagines graces his own before he watches Cora reel the fear in and fix her features into a well adjusted poker face.

"Regina, if you would allow me to kindly explain, I will. It seems Hook has led you astray and I can only imagine the questions you must have, dear." She goes to leave the room; beckoning with a nod for her daughter to follow.

"No, Mother. Whatever you have to explain, you do so here. I am not leaving this room. I'm not leaving Emma." Her tone is cold as ice and allows no room for discussion as Cora turns back around and meets her daughters determined gaze.

She sighs heavily, throwing her hands up in the air swiftly before she replies, "You are being quite dramatic, Regina. Really, there is no need for all of this flare. I am not working with Hades. On the contrary, I am helping your wife. She came here and has been a breath of fresh air for this dreadful place, so it is the least I can do .. for her and for you. For all of us."

Regina can only stand and stare at her mother. She hears the words but to trust her? Should she even dare but then what would her mother have to gain by lying now? Unless ..

"How do I know you are really on this side of the coin? I'm just supposed to take your word for it? Please." Regina rolls her eyes and slips back to her position in front of Emma. "Leave us. Now!"

She takes Emma's hand in her own and closes her eyes against the familiar touch. She expected Emma to be cold; not feel like a running oven and she smiles once more at her wife, wishing she would wake up.

 _Just open your eyes for me, Emma. Please. I need you._

"Uh .. love? I don't think, well actually, I _know_ that's not a good idea. I really need to fill you in on some .. things and better to do that before Emma awakes."

Regina just shakes her head no, not even bothering to glance at the pair standing behind her. She grips Emma's hand tighter and runs her thumb over the soft skin before she replies, "You're not calling the shots here, Pirate .. I'm not listening to another word from either of you until Emma wakes and can confirm to me we are all on the same side. Until then, kindly remove yourselves from this house."

"Regina, please - "

"You heard my daughter, Killian. I think we best be on our way. Come along, dear."

Regina hears her mother leave the room and after a heavy sigh she hears Hook's footsteps as well and then she hears the front door clicking shut. She quickly brings her lips to her wife's forehead, kissing her gently. Emma doesn't stir, her breathing remains even and steady but Regina feels a small tug on her hand that is still entwined with Emma's. She smiles to herself and remembers all the lazy naps shared with her wife while the wind gently swayed their hammock. She pretends that's all this is, just another afternoon nap with her wife as she kicks off her shoes and places her coat over the back of the sofa. She grabs a blanket that is folded on top of the ottoman and spreads it over the two of them as she lays down. It only takes a few seconds for her wife to burrow herself into her side, as she feels Emma's breath tickling the crook of her neck. The last thing she remembers before sleep claims her heavy eyes is the familiar pressure of a touch coasting along her stomach as Emma's palm rests there.

~sqsqsqsq~

Cora doesn't even make it past the unhinged gate before she is feeling herself spun around. "What the hell was that?! You should have let me - "

The older woman snaps her arm away from the metal grip. "Regina made her bed, Killian, and now she will lie in it." She looks away then, not wanting the man to see the unshed tears that glisten her eyes. Her daughter doesn't trust her and she can't blame her. Not really but it still hurts nonetheless. She composes herself enough, pushing the sting of tears away before she turns to face Hook again. "I killed her first love, and the list continues on from there. She wouldn't listen to me anyway, Captain. Or you for that matter. She will only listen to Emma so - "

"But .. " He looks back at the house and his eyes brighten with alarm as he turns to face Regina's mother again. "We should have warned her .. Emma - "

"Like I said, Captain, she wants her wife, so let her wait and deal with all of which that entails."

Hook watches Cora saunter off and he glances back at the looming door that is brushed in black before he mumbles, "Aye, a storm is brewing and something wicked this way comes."

~sqsqsqsq~

Emma is dreaming of laying on top of a soft cloud doused in vanilla and a hint of lavender when she begins to stir awake. She feels the familiar warmth of her wife against her before her eyes actually open fully to see Regina's sleeping face by her own. She pushes herself up slowly and can only stare at the raven haired woman laying before her. She shakes her head, trying to wipe away the foggy stupor too much liquor has caused her vision but no matter how hard she rocks her head back and forth, Regina is still there, breathing deeply and sound asleep. She quickly scampers back to the other end of the sofa, pushing away the blanket as it lands with a thump along the floor. Regina slowly opens her eyes letting her sight adjust to the colors of dusk that settle over the room. A chill runs over her as her feet hit the cool floor and she bends down to pick up the blanket. She turns to cover Emma with it and her eyes widen when she realizes Emma is no longer passed out on the sofa. Her eyes quickly scan the room and she jumps when a voice whispers by her ear, "You should have followed the feathers and light."

Regina spins around and comes face to face with her wife. She flings her arms around Emma's too thin frame and pulls her in tight against her body. For a moment, Emma welcomes the embrace. She in fact, cherishes it as the familiar scent of vanilla and lavender washes over her senses, as Regina's unique warmth radiates through to her. For a moment and then she pushes the woman away, roughly.

She is grateful for the darkened room, for the fading sun washing away behind them through the one and only glass window that christens the study. She is grateful because she doesn't want Regina to see the tears as they run a trail down her face, wetting her cheeks and tickling her neck. She turns away from the blurred features of her wife and quickly wipes them away before heading to the door and the much needed way out.

"Where the hell are you going?"

Regina's voice is barely above a whisper and it kills Emma to hear the agonizing sadness that filters through but she remains cold, like steel, she has to as she barely turns around, throwing a comment over her shoulder. "To get more alcohol .. I'm gonna need it if I have to deal with you."

The bitter remark has the same effect as a slap to her face as Regina quickly tilts her head to the side and with wide eyes and an open mouth, stares at her wife. "Emma are you .. does Hades have you under a spell? My mother .. did she - is she controlling your heart somehow?" Because really what else could this be, she thinks as she takes the few steps forward until she is reaching out, grabbing onto Emma; turning her around.

"Don't! Never again, do not touch me." She snaps her arm away from Regina's grasp and despite herself she takes a step forward until she is nose to nose with her wife. "Why are you even here? You clearly aren't dead, so _how_ are you even here?" She studies Regina's eyes for a moment, allowing herself to take in the speckles of dark brown, remembering all the warmth and comfort that specific swirl of a color used to bring. For a moment and then she takes a step back and turns away from the woman she had loved. _Still_ loves she realizes as she bumps into a side table and knocks over the remaining tumblr of scotch she had in the room.

 _Damn it._

Emma clearly just lied to her about why she was leaving the room, the proof of that is now dripping onto the floor, as Regina watches Emma stare longingly at the puddle of liquor and something inside of her snaps. "So help me Emma, if you lap that up like a dog, what the hell is wrong with you?! Why are you - "

A flash of red smoke appears, filling a corner of the room and then she hears a noise, a rush of muffled voices and then her eyes find the source of the sounds. She takes in a mirror as it lays up along a wall and she sees herself but then the mirror is shattering, the glass splintering into tiny pieces onto the floor.

Her eyes quickly find her wife and Emma is shaking as tears spill down her cheeks. Her heart shatters like the glass from the mirror as she rushes to her wife's side. She cups her tear stained face and pulls her close, until their foreheads are touching and she is saying against quivering lips, "Please, my love .. talk to me. You're scaring me and - "

"Your love?" She whispers those two words back to her and Regina feels her wrists being gripped tight as they are pulled down and away from Emma's face. She lets Regina go, pushing her back once again before another whisper of words fills the space between the two of them. "I told you, do not touch me."

But Regina is not having anymore of this; she grabs Emma's shoulders and shakes her, once, twice, and then a third time before she cups her face once more and yells, "Why?! What the hell is going on, Emma?! Tell me, now!"

She watches as Emma's eyes dim to a sea of hollow green and a lip trembles trying to fight back another rush of tears. She shakes Emma again as she tries to tear herself out of Regina's grasp. "I'm not letting you go until you tell me."

Time if it had existed would have engulfed the two women in it's never ending web because for Regina, it feels like forever until she hears Emma's voice squeak quietly, "I'll show you."

A fresh mirror appears on the wall and the glass sparkles and swirls until Regina is looking upon herself and their bedroom in Puerto Rico. She hears the scrape of a chair being pulled back and she steals a glance at Emma as she takes a seat and magics a fresh bottle of liquor and a glass onto the side table. Her eyes snap back to the mirror as soon as she hears a familiar accent ghost over the room.

 _Robin._

Her hands fly up to her face as she takes a step back from the mirror and she can only shake her head, trying to will what she is seeing away. Away from her, away from Emma, away for all of god damn eternity, she thinks as her eyes glance over at her wife. "Emma, it's not what you think .. I mean .. if you keep watching you will see - "

"Oh, you mean I will see this?" She slams her glass of liquor down onto the table and gets up, quickly walking to the mirror before spinning back around to glare at Regina. "Take a bow, your Majesty .. Bravo."

Regina can only stand and watch over Emma's shoulder as the images of her and Robin play out inside the mirror. The room fills up with passionate sounds amplified and Regina smashes the mirror in a swirl of blue smoke. Her eyes find Emma's and they are dark. Unfocused. Haunted. And for a moment she feels like she is watching Emma die all over again until Emma speaks and it is she who now feels dead inside.

"You can go back to your _beloved_ Robin, Regina .. no need to haunt the land of the dead. I am just fine. _Hook_ has seen to that. It seems Fate has won after all, huh. We both ended up exactly with what the Universe had set up for us." She walks back over to her neglected glass and raises it toward her wife. "I think I'll drink to that. Cheers." She swallows the rest of the scotch in one gulp and goes to pour herself another when the glass is ripped out of her hands and smashed against a far wall.

"You are an idiot. And a drunk idiot at that!" She pushes Emma onto the chair and takes a step back to glare at her wife. "Sit your ass down and listen to me."

"Oh, here we go .. the almighty superior complex shines through right on cue. I think I'm falling in love with you all over again." Emma fakes batting her eyes up at the older woman and then she flips the table over before stepping up into Regina's personal space. "Just back the fuck off, your Majesty, because you have no idea what I am capable of."

Regina narrows dark eyes at her drunk wife and pokes her in the chest, pushing her back a step in the process. "Well, you certainly aren't capable of putting two plus two together."

"I died. You fucked him. In our home. In our _bed_! That equals four to me, Regina." She magics another bottle of liquor and walks out of the room, shouting behind her as she goes, "I have no whimsical parting words for you, dear wife, except .. I want a divorce."

Regina can hear Emma laughing as unsteady footsteps echo up the stairwell. She grabs her coat and walks quietly out of the room. It is only when she hears the soft click of the black door shutting behind her does she allow herself to slide down against it and cry. The all too familiar panic creeps up on her and she lets it claim her. Emma, her wife, her love, her _everything_ .. god, Emma despises her. She closes her eyes and the memory of what happened that night with Robin races through her mind.

 _It has been five days since she buried Emma and everywhere she looked, everything she touched .. there was her love. Soft lips smiling. Sea green eyes sparkling. Dimples dancing in mischief. The ache for her wife was unbearable. And this house as she took another sip of brandy, this house seemed to be mocking her with every turn of a corridor. Her eyes are blurry as she downs the rest of the glass and she knows she's had enough. More than enough. She is grateful as she stumbles up and out of the room that her children aren't home. Or maybe that was her first mistake, to send them away for the week with Snow and David. Or at least maybe she should have went away with them. Spent time at the resort, she could have drawn a few brave smiles just listening to Gracie laugh as she splashed around in the pool and built sand castles on the white sand. Instead she's fumbling trying to get to her bedroom in the dark, drunk._

 _She feels strong arms grab her, holding her up .. steady on her feet and she laughs at the absurdity of it all. They are treating her like a child, taking different shifts to monitor her. Making sure she is never alone. And she secretly hates them for it. She once ruled an entire realm, cursed it too. She can certainly manage mourning her dead wife. But then the image of Emma lying so quiet, so cold, lifeless in their hammock comes smashing into her brain, flooding her memory, her vision and she throws up outside her and Emma's bedroom door. She feels Archie hold back her hair and she is grateful it is him on duty tonight. Not Robin or Granny._

 _The next night she doesn't drink as much, she is still drunk but not black out drunk. That's how she measures it now, in layers. There is tipsy drunk, which is how she spends her time burning the daylight hours and then there is able to walk on her own/not puke night drunk. Which is how she is now, as she makes her way up the stairwell. He comes around the bend, seemingly out of nowhere and she feels a steady hand brush along the small of her back. She catches a dimpled smile thrown her way and she nods back with a slight blur of vision. Okay so maybe she is cruising on the border of being stumbling/black out drunk. Oops. She laughs at herself and Robin can only shake his head as he helps guide her up the last step and into the hallway. Usually this is where she bids them all a goodnight but she feels herself tugging his arm, guiding him to follow her along into the bedroom._

 _This room is the worst for her. The sheets still smell like Emma. Everything in the room is dancing with Emma's scent. Including her. It makes the ache, the sadness ..god this room pushes her into a deep abyss and no amount of alcohol can drag her out of it. If anything it just helps push her in quicker._

 _She pulls him into a kiss and it feels wrong. Immediately, so horribly wrong. She tries to power through the feeling of utter wrongness and to just allow herself to feel alive again but as hands gently push her back and she pushes him away as well, she knows right there, she will never ever be able to love anyone else but her Emma. She smiles up at him but the light from the smile doesn't reach her eyes. Instead, she begins to cry softly, as she catches a glimpse of her wedding ring glinting from the light of the room. She sits at the edge of the bed and he kneels, looking up at her. And he listens as she talks about Emma. Years worth of Emma. With Henry and Gracie. Her family. She also talks about the difference between soul mates and True Loves._

 _He nods his head, knowing what she speaks of. Agreeing with her, whole heartedly. He sits next to her now, squeezing her hand as she cries softly against him._

 _"You and I were soul mates .. once upon a time .. but Emma .. she is my True Love, my compass, my North Star. Robin .. Emma was .. is my home."_

Regina's eyes snap open and she picks herself up off of the wooden porch. She paces back and forth a few times, putting the pieces together for herself. The timeline if you will and she flings open the blackened door. Emma is making her way back down the stairs and she stops when she sees Regina looking up at her. She can tell she had been crying, her nose is red and her eyes are puffy and she feels a familiar rush of just wanting to hold her wife. Hold her and kiss it all away. It's another moment where time does stand still as these two women just stare at one another until Emma's voice finally breaks through as she stuffs her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. "So, what's your version of two plus two?"

Regina watches as Emma quickly takes a drink from a bottled water and she realizes Emma is trying to sober up and maybe, just maybe .. meet her halfway.

~sqsqsqsq~

 ***Spoiler Alert*** _This is an SQ story through and through and_ _Regina's smoke is blue on purpose, (for those who have picked up on that since the beginning of the story) and it's something that will be addressed in chapters to come. Thank you again, for reading and following along with Regina and Emma. It means a lot to me._ :)


	21. Chapter 21

~sqsqsqsq~

"How long have you been drinking?" Regina's dark eyes fill with concern as they coast over Emma's features. She watches her wife shrug then glance away before swallowing a couple of aspirin and sitting down on the sofa. "Emma .. "

"How long have you been sleeping with Robin?" The question is soft, quiet as it fills the stillness in the room. Emma's voice has lost it's edge as she continues to sober up and if Regina didn't know any better, she'd say her wife's voice almost sounds defeated.

She pushes her shoulder off from the doorframe it had been leaning against and takes a few tentative steps into the makeshift study. "I told you, it's not - "

"The mirror - "

"Lied! It was a cruel hoax, Emma! God, you really _think_ I would - " Regina stalks forward and kneels down in front of the woman she loves beyond any realms possible. She looks up into her wife's eyes and quickly slips her hands around Emma's, squeezing her fingers tight. "Have you been .. have you been sleeping with the Pirate?"

Emma watches as brown eyes darken and then lighten as unshed tears glimmer inside of them and she quickly mumbles, "No." before looking away. Regina exhales a breath and squeezes Emma's hands again. "I could never sleep with him, Regina .. he isn't _you_."

"Well, then .. there you go because that is the _exact_ reason why I didn't sleep with Robin." She slips a hand up to caress Emma's cheek and closes her eyes when she feels her wife lean into her palm. Her eyes open once more as Emma's lips kiss her own and a familiar rush of magic pulses through her. They hadn't shared magical kisses since their Storybrooke days and she can't help but melt into her wife. Their kisses become languid, each savoring the other's sweet taste as both women stand. Regina feels Emma's hands travel a familiar path slowly down her sides before fingers tickle around her hips; drawing her close. She cups Emma's face, holding it softly before she pulls her in for a deeper kiss.

When they pull away Emma can't help but chuckle despite the seriousness of their situation. "Did I just jumpstart your magic?"

Regina rolls her eyes. "I'll have you know that I already conjured a fireball while you were sleeping but as for the full throttle of my magic? Yes, that kiss did the trick, darling. How did you come to have magic here, light magic no less?"

Emma shrugs and takes a step back. "Not really sure. It just came to me one day. How long has it been in your time since I .. you know?"

"One year. So, time isn't measured here?"

"It just doesn't exist. I'm not really sure if it's because this is a death realm, so in a sense, _Time_ is dead so to speak." Emma shrugs again before walking toward the table and taking a few more gulps from a bottled water.

Regina studies her wife and tries to figure out how to approach this next question. She decides to just rip the band aid off and just ask, "Why did you magic the inside of the mansion to look like - "

"Home?" Emma's gaze finds hers and she nods softly before Emma continues, "It made me feel .. loved I guess. Not so alone being around familiar things. I couldn't manifest the outside though, I tried but I guess because Storybrooke is what makes up this version of Hades Underworld .. I guess despite all the light magic, I can't change the outer laying's."

"But the door? It's black not white."

"That happened after the images appeared in the mirror. Hook says it's like my own personal mood ring. Sometimes the door is a dark red or a midnight blue. It usually depends on how drunk I get." Emma shrugs and refuses to meet Regina's sharp gaze as she takes another drink of water.

Regina lets her eyes roam over the study again and it does instantly make her think of home. Miss it fiercely, actually. She can only imagine the pain Emma must have been in, having all those self doubts and long range of emotions coursing through her each day, each night. With no time to really measure any of it by or hope to hold onto that things will get better. She let's out a breath and an idea springs to life in her mind as she takes a step forward and magic's a silver framed mirror onto a wall.

Emma's eyes widen as she glances at Regina. "What are you doing?"

Regina comes to stand next to her and grabs her hand; clasping it tightly in her own. "Showing you a piece .. a _real_ piece of home. Mirror, mirror on the wall; show us the ones we love most of all." Emma's bright eyes widen even further as white smoke begins to swirl inside the trapped glass and then Gracie's laughter and soft features come into view. Her dark brown hair is longer now but her bright green eyes still light up the darkened bedroom. She takes a step back and Regina steadies her, resting a palm along the small of her back.

"I miss her so much." The tears run a hot path down her cheeks as she whispers, "Henry." She watches as his tall frame comes into focus as he leans inside Gracie's doorway. She smiles and quickly wipes the tears away; clearing her blurred vision as the mirror catches him trying to apply a stern face at his little sister.

"Okay, little one .. time for sleep."

"But, Hen-ry, I's not tired." She wiggles her feet out from underneath the blanket and shoots him a pout. "Can we watch Elliot .. please?!" She sends him her cutest smile.

"As charming as that smile is, Gracie .. it's still bedtime and as soon as you fall asleep then the quicker it will be morning, right? And then you can watch Pete's Dragon."

"Yay! Elliot! Henry, do you think Elliot is real? Do you think he could be here with me right now but I's can't see him cause he's in .. in .. what's that word again?"

"In-vi-si-ble." He says it slowly so she can follow the syllables as she whispers it under her breath. He smiles to himself as he makes his way to his little sister and tucks her in once more. He brushes a quick kiss along her forehead before saying, "I think Elliot could very well be in this room, watching over you, Gracie. Yes. In fact, I bet he's tired and he's just waiting for you to fall asleep so he can too. You wouldn't want to keep him up would you? He's probably very tired from all the flying around he did all day."

"Nice try, Henry. I wasn't born yesterday."

Emma laughs as she continues to wipe the tears from her eyes and Regina slips an arm around her waist. She leans into her wife's soft body, a reassuring warmth she has missed fiercely as her eyes take in their son and daughter.

Henry mocks shock as he crosses his arms. "So, you don't believe in Elliot? Well, Gracie Jane .. tsk tsk."

She quickly sits up and shouts, "No! I do, I do! Elliot, I believe in you but my bro-ther is trying to man .. man .. Henry, what's that word you are trying to do here?"

Henry has to bite his lip to keep from laughing as he answers, "Manipulate. Man, Mom is so gonna love that you learned that word." He shakes his head and points his finger at his sister. "Now, sleep. No more stalling, Gracie."

Regina unwraps her hold on Emma and raises her hand; waving it in front of the mirror and both women watch as the glass fills with white smoke again. Her eyes catch Emma's before she quietly asks, "Do you want to see what happened with Robin .. I can show you - "

"No. I .. I trust you. I believe you." Watery eyes look away until Regina cups Emma's chin and draws her gaze back to her own. She wraps her arms around Emma and pulls her in close and both women sigh at the contact as Emma's arms slip around Regina; holding her tight. She shivers as Emma kisses the inner curve of her neck and tears begin to sting her eyes as old memories gallop through her mind.

~sqsqsqsq~

 _"Hmm .. Gracie's finally out for the count." She cuddles in next to Regina and their hammock sways gently._

 _"How many stories this time?" Regina clasps Emma's hand placing it onto her stomach as she begins to play with her wedding ring. Emma snuggles deeper into her wife's side, kissing her cheek before sighing contently as she watches Regina twirl the silver band around._

 _"Three. Which is better than last night's five." Emma chuckles._

 _"You spoil her, you know." Regina pats her wife's hand and Emma immediately misses the soothing touch on her ring finger._

 _"I think that's a pot meet kettle moment if there ever was one, babe." Emma's eyes sparkle in mischief as Regina turns her head to meet her gaze._

 _"Maybe." Regina smiles and gives a casual shrug as Emma wraps an arm around her stomach._

 _"Where's the North Star again?" Emma asks quietly and Regina smiles to herself, knowing this game all too well._

 _She plays her part and answers her wife. "It's right there, Emma .. see?" Regina points up to the brightest star that rests in the night sky high above them._

 _Emma squints her eyes, sitting up a little, making the hammock swoosh gently again. "Are you sure that is truly the North Star, Regina? All the way up there, just a small dot in the blackened sky?" Emma scrunches her nose and Regina smiles bright as she studies her wife's features._

 _"I'm quite sure, Emma."_

 _"Well, I don't think it is." She lays back down on the hammock, clasping her hands behind her head in the process._

 _"Oh no, so tell me, my love, which one do you think it is, hmm?" Regina pretends to be offended, crossing her arms and ankles for good measure but her eyes still dance in a shimmering light as Emma turns over and meets her gaze. Regina feels the gentlest touch of fingertips trace down her cheek before they rest underneath her chin. Emma leans down; claiming her lips in a soft kiss before whispering, "I don't think it's kept in the night sky at all. I think the true North Star is laying right here."_

 _She feels Emma's hand rest along where her heart beats inside her chest and her eyes shimmer in love for this woman as she pulls Emma down for another sweet kiss._

~sqsqsqsq~

Regina quickly pulls away from the embrace and wipes at the few tears that has escaped. That memory always makes her cry, ache for Emma and it's a bit surreal to be having the memory now while holding Emma in her arms, standing inside a mock model of their home in Puerto Rico.

She clears her throat and tries to give Emma her best reassuring smile. "Can you .. can you tell me how you got here, Emma? Do you even remember anything?" She thinks about her own trip through the portal that landed her in the Underworld and how she had relived memories shared between her and Emma right down to their first greeting, that night in Storybrooke so many years ago.

She watches Emma bite a lip then lick her lips and she knows it's her wife's nervous tick as hands quickly get stuffed into the back pockets of her jeans. "Emma .. "

"I .. yeah, I remember things." Emma turns away, uncapping a new bottle of water now and Regina narrows her eyes. She knows Emma doesn't want to tell her, she is trying to avert and now is not a time to be doing that. Her patience has already been stretched enough as she grabs Emma's shoulder and gently turns her around to face her once more.

"I need to know, Emma. I need to know all of it." Emma studies her wife's sharp gaze, watches as her brown eyes flicker to a darker shade as her features express serious determination. She slowly nods her head and gestures for them to both sit down on the sofa. Regina complies as she grabs her hand and leads them to the plush cushions. She watches as Emma fidgets a bit, clearly stalling but when she clears her throat and brown eyes catch sea green, Emma finally concedes and starts talking.

"I remember you. I remember feeling safe and warm inside your arms as the birds chirped above us in the trees and then there was .. nothing. I heard a faint heartbeat and then I was .. gone. Unconscious." She shrugs before continuing, "And then I was present again, I don't know how much time had passed but I was standing in a field. A beautiful field made up of strawberry patches and these bright blue flowers. I was wearing a yellow summer dress and it reminded me of the bug." She smiles and Regina squeezes her hand; beckoning with wide eyes for her to continue.

"And then this owl flew over me, low .. it's wings spreading so wide as it glided in the cloudless blue sky. It circled above me and then a few feathers fell, swirling in a breeze and I don't know how but I just knew I was supposed to follow them as they floated a couple of feet ahead of me. After a few steps, this white ball of light appeared, floating in mid air, eye level to me but at least a good fifty yards away still. A feather drifted in front of me then and I held out my hand to catch it. I .. " Tears begin to run down Emma's cheeks and Regina does her best to wipe them away but they just keep falling. Emma pulls Regina close, burying her face into the crook of her neck.

Regina's own tears cascade down as she falls into the tight embrace. Her heart aches for her love, for not being able to be there for her. She feels the familiar panic begin to wash through her and she focuses on Emma's light sobbing; to help keep her grounded in the present. She begins to trace circles along the small of Emma's back, knowing the soothing touch will calm her on some level. After a few minutes, she feels Emma relax in her arms and her crying subsides.

"I'm sorry .. I .. it's my fault you're here, Regina .. if I had just followed the light you wouldn't be here. You _shouldn't_ be here - " Regina pulls back and cups Emma's face between her palms, drawing her lips softly against her own. Both women melt into the kiss as a familiar rhythm takes over them.

The kiss anchors them once more as they pull away; sharing a smile before Regina says, "It's okay, darling. Just keep going because it will help me if I know how _you_ ended up here, okay?"

Emma takes a deep breath before she mumbles a quiet, "Okay."

She kisses Regina's cheek; nuzzling the smooth skin with her nose for a second before she sits back and continues. "I caught the feather and held it in my hand but then I heard .. voices. Gracie's, there was water running almost like .. maybe bath water? And then Gracie was laughing, I heard splashing but then the laughter stopped and Gracie was crying and then there was Henry's voice. A soothing tone trying to calm her; telling her it was okay to laugh and play."

Emma closes her eyes trying to push away the sting of fresh tears; her voice merely a whisper as she recounts the rest. "And then I heard you and my mom, raised voices. Arguing and then .. I heard Archie's voice, murmurings and then I heard you .. crying. I dropped the feather and I could hear you clearer. Before, it felt like the voices, the sounds were coming to me as if my head were underwater or something but then I let that feather go and it was all there for me. I turned away from the growing white light, I started walking in the other direction, toward the sounds and then I could _see_ you. You were laying in bed, holding a pillow and you were alone and crying and .. "

Emma shakes her head, the tears falling again as she quickly stands and begins to pace around the sofa. Regina leans back and stares straight ahead; mortified as she realizes Emma is describing the night of the funeral. She can't wrap her brain around the fact that Emma had seen her, how is that even possible? A hundred questions race through Regina's mind, questions that she desperately wants the answers to.

"I'm sorry, Regina .. I left you and I did that. I could have .. I could have tried to magic myself better but I _chose_ to .. I - "

Regina shakes her head, bringing herself out of the shock induced fog and stands quickly. She grips her wife's shoulders; lightly shaking Emma until an unfocused gaze meets her own. "I need you to focus for me. I need you to just get the rest of it out, Emma, please."

She quickly shakes her head, biting a bottom lip as she pushes herself back from Regina's hold. "It's all too painful. Just .. I thought when I saw those images through the mirror, I thought you had moved on with Robin because you _hated_ me. Because I had put you through _that_ instead of just listening to you and trying to -"

"Oh, Emma .. " She pulls her wife close; willing herself to absorb all of the anguish that is pouring off of Emma in waves.

"I saw you, Regina and I couldn't do anything to .. I couldn't touch you, hold you." She's crying harder now as incoherent words get mumbled into Regina's neck.

Regina knows all too well what Emma is going through right now. A full blown emotional breakdown and she blames herself. The irony isn't lost on Regina though. The fact that she had spent the last year, mourning Emma, not really being able to cope with the loss of her wife and here in the Underworld her wife had been riddled with guilt too. She had been slowly drinking herself underneath a table each day and all spurred on from images that had been conjured by a sick and twisted -

"Well, isn't this just precious? It appears my dearest Emma has a visitor. Regina, don't you know it's uncouth to come into someone's realm without bringing them some form of a gift? Surely, your mother had taught you better than that, dear. I do have a soft spot for a nice bottle of red .. just an F.Y.I." Hades unfolds his arms from across his chest and pushes himself off from the doorframe. He takes a few steps forward and laughs heartily at the fireball that is floating above Regina's palm. "You do favor that cute little parlor trick, don't you?" He laughs deeper and Regina's eyes widen when the flame is instantly distinguished by a quick flash of his wrist.

"You can't hurt me. I am a _God_." He lifts his head, a superior pose if Regina had ever seen one. Once upon a time she had invented _that_ specific pose. Being the Evil Queen, holding the power of such unbridled magic, well, she had felt like a God herself in those days. She quickly studies the man standing before her, taking him in and as her eyes rake over his tall lean frame clothed in a fine tailored suit; she can't help but think that he reminds her of a young Gold. She narrows her eyes, ready to take a step forward but she feels herself being pushed back by Emma's arm as her wife takes a protective stance; blocking her path forward.

"Ah, yes .. well, of course." Hades claps his hands together. "Let's all give the Savior a round of applause. The ever gallant white knight. You know it was _that_ very hero complex that got you into this mess. If you had just let Fate play it's course all those years ago but no, you had to be all head strong and gung ho. You just had to mess with the Powers, didn't ya."

"Get out. You aren't welcome here."

"Well, I'm not a vampire, Savior. Lucky for me, I do not need an invitation to enter one's .. " He looks around the room and his nose crinkles in disgust. "Home and what kind of host would I be if I didn't come and welcome our newest resident, hmm?"

"She isn't staying, Hades. You're gonna open a portal and return her back to .. " Emma closes her mouth and steals a glance at her wife. She doesn't know how Regina got here, they hadn't gotten to that part yet and she knows there's no way she got here from Puerto Rico. Not without magic, the only place that -

"You went to Storybrooke?" Emma's eyes widen as she forgets all about Hades for the moment. She stares at her wife and she knows the answer is yes just from the expression on Regina's face alone. "But Henry and Gracie, they were at home in the mirror, so - "

"Emma, we can talk about this but I think we have more important - "

"There's nothing more important then the kids, god Regina, are we really back to this - "

"I love my children .. _our_ children more than anything in this world, Emma! I didn't crash into the Underworld just so we can keep going around in god damn circles!"

"Uh .. excuse me .. " Hades slowly raises his hand as his blue eyes twinkle. "Sorry to interrupt this captivating episode with The Magical Housewives of Maine but can we maybe get back to me and my devilishly charming self perhaps, yes?"

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	22. Chapter 22

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Regina and Emma stop their bickering as they both turn to face Hades.

"Ah, that's much better. Glad to see I have your undivided attention." He snickers and his eyes light up in glee. "So, where were we? Oh yes, me and my god like charisma." He laughs and both women roll their eyes in unison.

"Well, I could raise you an eye roll, ladies, I mean how quaint that The Queen comes to rescue her Princess." He fakes a yawn before saying, "That pesky prophet book really was a thorn in Fate's side."

Regina and Emma's eyes catch before they both ask at the same time, "What do you know about the book?"

"Well, I know enough. It was the talk of the town for awhile anyway. How Regina and Emma beat Fate. Or did they? It seems you two didn't get much of a happy ending. Regina lost _another_ love and Emma is _always_ the trusty Savior, right up to the bitter end." His eyes catch the blonde's and she shakes her head at him.

"Shut up Hades."

Regina looks between the two of them and her eyes narrow. "What's he talking about, Emma?" She pins her wife with a sharp glare and Hades rich laugh fills the room.

"Oh, you didn't tell her? Well, what are you waiting for Savior? Not a fan of spoilers, huh? Want to tease this one out?" His eyes catch Regina's and they sparkle in a swirl of blue delight. "Well, Regina, I can assure you, you'd have never seen this twist coming." He disappears in a swirl of red smoke, his laugh echoing behind him.

Emma feels her wife's glare on her as she continues to stare at the hardwood floor. "What's going on Emma? What the hell is he talking about?"

"I don't know. He's a nut job, Regina. He makes Cora look like Mother Teresa. Which speaking of your mom, since your here, you could probably help her move on. That'll piss Hades off to no end. So, bonus points, right?"

She gives her wife a toothy grin but Regina isn't falling for the abrupt change in subject. "Yes, well, nice try _Savior_.. but you better start talking."

Emma looks around the room, trying to figure out what her best option is. She knows she can't tell Regina what Hades was talking about but the only solution that crosses her mind makes her sick to her stomach. She knows what she's about to do is just another violation of trust against her wife but she sees no other way around it. She smiles at Regina, walking toward her as she nods her head and whispers a quiet, "Okay."

She sees Regina relax. Of course, trusting her implicitly as she quickly raises her hand and touches Regina's forehead. Her wife immediately slumps in her arms, fast asleep and Emma wishes it didn't have to be this way as she puffs them both up to the bedroom. She gets Regina settled under the covers and kisses her forehead before quietly whispering, "I'm sorry, love." She sits at the edge of the bed for awhile, just listening to her wife's steady breathing. It comforts her and she wants to savor the familiar sound, stow it away for all eternity.

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When she finally has the will power to leave Regina's side, she finds herself back in the study, willing herself not to take a much needed drink. Her eyes take in Regina's black coat that had at some point been draped over the side of the sofa. She lifts it up to her nose, breathing in her wife's sweet scent and she begins to cry as the tears fall into the fabric. She knows when Regina finds out about what Hades was referring to that she will never forgive her.

The tears stop falling at some point and she places the coat back down, folding it neatly in the process as her eyes catch the mirror that is still resting on the wall. The white smoke seems to be calling to her as she hears herself chant, "Mirror, mirror on the wall, please show when Regina needed me most of all." The white smoke shifts into a swirl of periwinkle and then Regina comes into focus.

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"Emma?" Regina is wiping sleep from her eyes when Emma turns and catches her gaze. "What are .. what on earth are you doing?" Brown eyes shine bright as they lock onto the mirror before quickly flashing to her wife again.

"I .. the mirror .. it just kept going." Emma looks away as she swipes at a few tears. "I'm sorry, Regina .. I just didn't think .. "

Regina flicks her wrist and the mirror disappears completely from it's place on the wall. She turns to face Emma and tilts her head, eyes narrowing. "You didn't think what, Emma?" She glances at the vacant wall before looking back at her wife. "What did you ask it to show exactly?"

Emma leans against the back of the sofa and Regina watches as she moves her foot along the hardwood floor. Emma won't look at her and Regina knows she isn't going to like the answer even before the quiet mumble of words fill the room. "To show when you needed me the most." Sea green eyes find her now and they shimmer with unshed tears. "I just didn't think my death would .. I thought you would .. never mind." She pushes herself away from the sofa but Regina's hand grabs onto her shoulder; stopping her.

"That's what Hades was hinting at? You thought everyone would just bounce back after losing you, is that it? That you dying wouldn't fucking matter Emma?!"

Her wife still won't meet her gaze. She stares straight ahead and Regina stands in front of her now, shaking her shoulders. "Look at me."

Emma drops her head, shaking it roughly. "I can't. I .. "

Regina cups her face; gently lifting it up until sea green eyes meet her own. "You got sick and you just shut down on me. You made all these decisions for us and I allowed you to put up that wall. Emma, when you died, this whole past year has been me asking myself, what the hell just happened here? For nine years we were a team and there was nothing but openness and trust between us and then the last year? You just .. you left me even before actually dying." Regina's voice cracks as she loses her resolve and hot tears roll down her cheeks. She turns from her wife as she quietly whispers, "You should have healed yourself. Gold told me about your magic, Emma."

She turns back around and Emma's eyes catch the angry gaze that is locked upon her now. "The truth is, you were okay with dying. You accepted it and you were fine with leaving me and the children. And normal people Emma? Normal people would give _anything_ to have access to magic. To have a way to heal themselves and they would have taken it!" She pushes a finger into her wife's chest as the anger boils up inside of her. "You made me bury you! You made me stand there and watch people sprinkle dirt onto your grave! You made me have to deal with all of your mother's hurt! All of it got lashed onto me, Emma! And the conversations I had to have with Gracie, our daughter! Asking me why Mommy couldn't just come home and her crying, Emma! And you could have fixed it! You could have at least tried to heal yourself with the gift that was given to you, to _us_ but no, you chose to die!"

"So, Magic is a gift now?! Are you kidding me? And I chose to die? Well, let's not stop there, Regina. Hell, I must have _chose_ to get sick in the first place then!" Emma leans back against the sofa again; crossing her arms in front of her chest as she glares at her wife. "There isn't a book on, How to Die for Dummies, Regina and I .. I did shut you out because it was the only way I knew how to process it all."

Regina feels the hairs on the back of her neck rise as Hades taunting words flash back at her and she knows the answer; she knows what the twist is before she hears herself even ask, "Emma, did you choose to get sick?" Everything rushes back to her as she watches Emma's eyes bare into her own before quickly looking away. That day, the day they found out and there is a fogginess to it, the same feeling she had after Emma rendered her unconscious. God, she _knows_ but she needs to hear her say it out loud.

"Emma, tell me you didn't."

"I wasn't going to watch you die! You said no magic! You were worried about the kids and that magic comes with a price. And you had a point with that, so I .. "

Emma watches as Regina turns away from her. She walks around the sofa and sits down, burying her face in her hands as Emma looks away, staring straight ahead with her back to her wife as she continues to lean against the sofa. Hades words haunt her again as she whispers, "Always the Savior .. to the bitter end." Regina is shaking as she looks back at her wife before staring straight ahead again. "You were never going to tell me the truth were you? If Hades hadn't brought it up - "

"No. I never would have told you, Regina. I wanted to just get you back home, out of the Underworld. I just wanted to get you safe again; away from here. Away from _me_."

"Tell me _everything_."

Emma glances at her wife before looking away and shifting on her feet a little. "It was twelve days after we found out and I .. late one night, I went outside, I tapped into my magic and when I looked up into the sky there was a star twinkling brighter than the rest. I watched it burn from white gold to a deep red and I made a wish upon it. The next thing I knew, I was standing in a room with each wall painted as one of the four seasons. Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall. It was .. beautiful. Life like. The floor was the color of grass and the ceiling was a cloudy blue sky."

She takes a deep breath and continues, "A man and woman appeared. They said they represented the Sun and the Moon. They asked me to voice out loud the wish that lay inside my heart. So, I did. Then a mirror appeared and I was staring at my reflection but in the mirror version of me, I was wearing that yellow summer dress and the background was a field of the strawberry patches and blue flowers and I remember an owl was perched up on a tree branch. The man or the Sun, however you want to look at it, he said the mirror represents tomorrow and that I represent today. I asked about the Past and they smiled at me and said, 'The past is no more, dear Emma .. it simply doesn't exist. There is only Today and Tomorrow.'

"What did you wish for Emma .. exactly?" The question fills the room and Regina's voice is gruff, raw, hollow, Emma thinks and she feels herself shudder.

She closes her eyes and whispers, "I wished for you to live and for death to take me instead." Silence fills the room and to Emma it feels like it goes on forever before she hears Regina speak.

"Well, then." She hears her wife rise from the sofa and she turns to watch as Regina begins to walk out of the room.

"Where are you going?"

"To get some wine. I assume our wine cellar is in this version as well?" Regina won't look at her; her back is still kept to Emma as she leans a hand along the doorframe and waits for an answer.

"Yes." She whispers and Regina leaves the room.

She makes it to the bottom step of the cellar before she sits down and begins to cry. A range of thoughts wash through her but the main one is .. irony. It is a tricky bitch that irony. And it always plays a hand in all of life's tales. It's instrumental and she loathes it the most. If she could conjure a fireball big enough to burn all of Irony to damnation, she would. In a heartbeat. She wipes at her eyes, her cheeks, under her chin, trying desperately to scrub all the fallen tears away. She lifts her head; standing up quickly as she grabs a bottle of her favorite red and walks back up the stairs.

Emma is sitting at the table when Regina walks back into the room and her eyes light up a little bit as Regina takes the seat across from her. Emma watches as she magic's herself a wine glass and conjures the bottle so it is chilled before filling the glass to the brim and taking a long drink. She quickly takes another sip, swallowing it slowly before she places the glass down and leans back in her chair. Her eyes finally find Emma's and she feels her heart break as she sees nothing but sadness staring back at her.

"So, the whole time you were sick did you know that you had - "

"No! I .. only remembered after I was here."

Regina's eyes brighten a little as she asks, "Is it another one of Hade's tricks, a false memory perhaps?" Emma notices the hitch in Regina's voice, and for a moment she wishes she could just lie to her wife but she's lied enough or rather maybe not so much lied since she didn't remember in the first place, she thinks. But betrayed? Yeah, she definitely betrayed her wife's trust and Emma can't help but think it's pretty much the same thing. Same straw breaking the camels back.

"No, Regina. When I remembered, he got the memories as well. He said it was some form of 'Gatekeeper' thing, I don't know. So, no, he had no idea until I did."

She nods her head slowly as she runs a fingertip around the stem of her wine glass. "Oh."

Emma leans forward, grabbing Regina's hands, trying to clasp them in her own but Regina quickly pulls them away; shaking her head. She feels her heart break again while she looks into her wife's face. She has to will herself to glance away from those breath taking sea green eyes she loves so much.

"Please, don't hate me, Regina. Please .. please forgive me. I .. "

"It isn't my forgiveness you need, Emma. You messed with Free Will .. you made a deal with the Universe! Do you realize that? Do you realize how dumb it was to do what you did?! Why not just heal me? I mean you had no problem betraying me, so why not just heal me and - "

"For the same reason I didn't let you heal me or I didn't try and heal myself, I was worried about the price that would cost."

"There was still a cost. We are paying it! Do you not get that?" She takes another gulp of wine, swirling the rest of it around inside her glass as she swallows. "I would like to hear the rest of it, Emma .. by all means go on."

She licks her lips and leans back in her own chair, mirroring Regina's pose. "The man and the woman began to dance around me and then they actually turned into the Sun and the Moon. The room became hot and cold at the same time. There were light and dark shadows and then I was back standing in the yard, looking up at the night sky. You came out, took my hand, and led me to our hammock. And for those past twelve days, I was always the one sick and you were okay. We both didn't remember it being any other way."

Silence fills the room again and all Emma can hear is Regina swallowing another mouthful of wine.

The quiet continues to spread over the room like a heavy blanket.

"Can you please say something, Regina .. yell, scream at me .. _something_?"

"So, all the drinking you've been doing? It wasn't just because of Robin was it?"

Emma looks away and shakes her head. "I remembered and then Hades started conjuring the mirrors up all around the house. So, the drinking was just a combination of trying to adjust to what I did, how I betrayed you and at the same time I thought you hated me for dying on you and the whole Robin thing, just all of it was too much for me to deal with."

Regina's brown eyes focus on Emma as she pours herself another glass of wine and tries to absorb all she has said to her. Another stretch of silence fills the room before she finally says, "There's another book. It just appeared to Gracie out of thin air apparently. Sound familiar?"

Emma narrows her eyes before she asks, "What's it called?"

"The Queen and her Idiot." Regina deadpans.

"Very funny. Seriously, what's it titled, Regina?"

She flicks her wrist and a wine glass appears in front of Emma. She fills it up for her before raising her own in a toast.

"It's called Today and Tomorrow .. perhaps, we should drink to that, no?"

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	23. Chapter 23

**A.N.** _I listened to_ Heathens by Twenty One Pilots _for this chapter .._

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"Today and Tomorrow? Are you serious? I mean - "

"Oh, I'm quite serious, Emma." She takes another sip of wine before placing the glass back down onto the table. Her eyes catch Emma's and she can see the million and one thoughts racing through her wife's mind in that one and simple glance. She herself doesn't know how to wrap her own brain around all this new information either. She's quite sure that all the questions she has running through her own mind easily will match Emma's as well. She takes a deep breath; pushing the glass away as she exhales and finally turns her face away from the intense gaze.

"Regina .. I .. I am sorry that I went behind your back but I can't apologize for actually making the deal. I'd do it again if I had to. If it meant saving you then - "

"And what about Henry and Gracie? You were so adamant about not trying to heal you, to not going back to Storybrooke because of wanting to protect the children. And yet, you're sitting here endorsing the complete opposite of that!" She pushes her chair back, swiftly rising from it and all Emma can do is watch as her wife storms out of the room. She hears the front door slam shut and she feels herself jump from the sharp bang. She pushes her own glass of wine away as she lowers her head to rest along the table top. She knows Regina has a point. A strong argument set up in her arsenal and Emma doesn't have a good defense to rectify her actions.

It's hypocritical. She knows this. She's known it since the day all those forgotten memories came flooding back to her here in the Underworld. She also knows it's why Regina will more than likely never forgive her, because she risked the kids. Plain and simple. She put them at risk to spare Regina. She ended up doing the exact thing Regina wanted to do for her. Regina wanted them to go back to Storybrooke. To use magic. To try at least and she had refused. Emma lifts her head and slowly leans back against the chair. She feels herself get angry as more thoughts run laps inside her brain because Regina is just as much a hypocrite then. She wanted to bring them all to Storybrooke to try and heal Emma with magic; even with the knowledge that all magic comes with a price.

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Regina walks. It's all she can really do as she tries to quell all the emotions that are building up inside of her. She walks and takes in the dreary doppleganger town and all the moonlit shadows that dance over it's features. At one point she stops and stares up at the full moon as she hears Emma's earlier tale ring inside her mind again. She wonders about the man and the woman that Emma had met.

The Sun and the Moon.

She doesn't know how long she in fact stares up into the chilly night sky but when she pulls her eyes away she sees a figure walking in her direction. She squints her eyes to try and make out who is heading toward her but the street is too dark; only when the figure steps into the light cast by the moon does Regina see who it is.

 _Cruella Deville._

"Out for a midnight stroll, darling?" The woman looks around, eyes widening with surprise as she mocks, "And without your trusty Savior? My, my, we're certainly feeling brave aren't we?"

Regina narrows her eyes before she turns to walk away. "Was it something I said? What's a little humor between old villains, hmm?"

She feels her blood boil up like steam inside a covered pot as she spins around and takes the few short steps that make her nose to nose with the other woman. "I am not a villain!"

"Well, not currently, but just like a Dalmatian can't hide it's spots forever, either can you, dear." She laughs and Regina curls her fist, resisting the urge to punch her and quiet the arrogant woman once and for all. Her eyes widen at the thought as she stares down at her hand; watching her fingers unclench and spread out again. Cruella glances down studying the movement before she lets out a low chuckle. "A bit strange, hmm? How your first impulse is to hit me instead of oh, I don't know, flare up a fireball maybe?" Her laugh grows deeper, bellowing from someplace low in her stomach and Regina has another strong impulse wash over her. This time to kick her; and kick her hard right in the gut.

She shakes her head and takes a step back as questioning eyes finally catch Cruella's. The woman rolls her eyes and smugly says, "This place magnifies the opposite of all things." She shrugs while her shoulder briskly pushes past Regina as she walks away.

Footsteps approach again, set in a different beat and she turns to face the sound.

"Hello, Regina."

"Does no one sleep in this town?"

Cora smiles, dipping her head to the side as she studies her daughter. "The sleeping schedule here can be a bit different, I suppose."

Regina reflects on Cruella's earlier words and she feels herself nod her head in understanding. "So, this place ... the Underworld, it runs on promoting the opposite. That explains why you are helping Emma. This place has you on a leash."

"Well, no, not really, darling. _This_ _place_ as you so eloquently call it, well, it isn't fueled by promoting the opposite of ones personality. On the contrary dear, it fuels ones true desires. Who they were or what they had in their core before certain life choices altered them in a way."

"But Cruella - "

"Is still a cunningly evil bitch? Well, yes, she is. Her tongue is sharp as ever and she still has that god awful obsession with furs but if you look hard enough you will see some inner _core_ differences."

Regina scoffs, rolling her eyes for good measure as she mutters, "Maybe if I look for all eternity."

Cora dismisses Regina's disdain with a wave of her hand as she beckons her daughter to walk with her. She sees Regina's shoulders tense up and then relax a bit as she watches her daughter finally move closer and match her stride.

They walk on in silence as they come to a clearing, a field riddled in moonlit shadows and tall grass. Regina recognizes it as the same field she had woken up in and she has a sneaking suspicion her mother already knows this fact. She watches as Cora glances up at the pale full moon, it's brightness filtered by a dull setting. She's about to speak but closes her mouth as Cora's voice filters around them.

"Not long after Emma came here .. things, this place, " She waves her hand around before placing it along the top beam of a well worn wooden fence, "Everything started shifting in small ways at first and then Emma's magic took root inside of her and when she used it for the first time, well, there were some aftershocks."

"Aftershocks? And Emma's magic .. light magic or - "

"There's nothing dark about your wife, darling. Yes, Emma's light magic shone through, like I said earlier, a person's true core shines through here and Emma's magic is very much a part of who and what she is at that core, Regina. She is a product of True Love and the world you two built a life in had to adjust to that just like the Underworld has had to do."

"The Sun and the Moon? Do you know anything about that, Mother?" Cora takes in the faint voice, the trepidation laced inside the quiet question and she nods her head slowly.

"They are the world you live ins Gatekeepers just as Hades is this ones."

"Are they .. good? Light or - "

"They are neutral, like time itself .. like the wind. In your world, it's there, it's felt, but it's also untouchable; always this continuing powerful force built around cause and effect."

Regina leans along the wooden fence, mirroring her mother's pose as she rests her chin against her forearms. "So, like the whole butterfly flapping it's wings myth?"

Cora chuckles and nods her head a bit in admiration. "Well, in a sense, yes. When a butterfly flaps it's wings, somewhere lightening strikes."

Regina's eyes widen and she steals a glance at her mother, watching as the moonlight prances shadow's across her features. "How do .. how do you know all of this?"

Cora shrugs and a quiet mumble of words ghost past her lips. "I just do, Regina. I .. I suppose I played a hand in why you are in fact here."

Her mother decides to clam up and stop talking right when Regina needs her to continue the most and Regina can't help but grip the frame of the fence tight, splinters be damned as she says through gritted teeth, "Well? You can't just - "

"I'm .. getting to it. Patience, Regina. It is a virtue, after all."

Regina narrows her eyes at her mother before she hears herself say, "You really have changed or rather, you are _different_ here, in this place." She shakes her head and can't help but turn to study this woman who has put her through a roller coaster of events; of emotions, through not only the Enchanted Forest and Wonderland but also Storybrooke and now it appears they are working on their fourth realm together as she sighs heavily and steals a quick glance back up at the moon.

Her mother begins to speak again and Regina hones her gaze back to Cora, giving nothing short of her full and undivided attention as she listens on with bated breath.

"One night, after Emma's magic was being used full throttle and she .. well, she remembered _things_.. " Cora pauses, trying to figure out how to side step that specific knowledge she knows when Regina's voice cuts in and kindly puts her out of her floundering.

"I know what _things_ you are dancing around, Mother so you don't have to proceed with caution." She waves her hand for Cora to continue and pleading brown eyes shine bright in the moonlit night as Cora meets her gaze.

She coughs, clearing her throat before nodding her head slowly. "Well, then .. where was I .. oh yes, so when her memory came back to her and Hades had started conjuring up those dreadful mirrors, I was standing right here, in this very spot, looking up at the moon and I remember feeling .. "

A minute goes by and then another which laps into five if time in fact was counted here and Regina almost growls in pure frustration. Almost, as she feels herself reign in the feral urge and instead she settles for a snarl as she exclaims, "Mother."

Cora side eyes her, not really feeling all that comfortable divulging this part of the story but if she glosses over it, Regina will just pressure her for all the sordid details until she just has to crack anyway. She sighs, taking in a deep breath as she exhales slowly, and looks away completely from her daughters annoyed glare. Her eyes catch the full shape of the moon again, the color brown reflecting it's pale chalky light before she finally begins to speak again.

"I remember feeling .. sad. Feeling this _lost_ emotion for Emma .. this all consuming grief for the woman who chose to save my daughter and sacrifice herself." She hears the sharp intake of breath whisper by her ear as Regina gasps and Cora turns to face her.

"She loves you, Regina. More than .. more than anything. She became the Dark One for you and ten years later she .. she died for you. And you can't fault her for that. Do you hear me? Because I know you will see it as a betrayal, as something to just be so _angry_ about because being angry is _easy_ for us, Regina. It's a Mills defense set up in stone. But don't you dare do it! Not to Emma and more importantly, not to yourself."

She is shaking Regina's shoulders now, gripping her coat tight as fingertips turn a paler shade of white and all Regina can do is nod her head slowly as she absorbs the emotional plea. She isn't even aware of the tears that are falling down her cheeks, not until she feels her Mother wipe them all away as she whispers, "That woman is pure strength, Regina and so are you. That's why .. your world, this world, _any_ world .. it has no idea how to handle the two of you."

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 **A.N.** _I had to divide this up into two parts, or else this chapter would have been extremely long and a lot to digest/absorb. Love to all ~_


	24. Chapter 24

**A.N.** _I listened to_ Sound of Silence sung by Disturbed _for this chapter .._

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"That woman is pure strength, Regina and so are you. That's why .. this world, your world, _any_ world .. it has no idea how to handle the two of you." Cora slowly releases her daughter and takes a step back as she smooth's down her own gray trench coat.

Regina stares at her mother with wide brown eyes, losing all thought for a moment as every word barrels into her. It takes a few minutes to compose herself, to refocus and get herself back on track but when she does, the image of the most recent book grips her vision. "There's a storybook .. it appeared in our home, in my daughters bedroom. Do you know anything about that?"

Cora's eyes snap to Regina's as she rests a palm along the wooden fence, leaning closer to her daughter in the process. "What kind of book and when exactly did it appear?"

"The same kind that appeared when Henry was a child and then the one that Belle found when Emma was the Dark One. All three books had missing pages in them, Henry's was self inflicted, he took them so I wouldn't figure out Emma was the Savior and Snow and Charming's daughter but Emma's book - "

"Emma's book?"

"Well, yes, I always just referred to the second one as Emma's because when she touched it, the inseam would show us ripped edges and when we dispersed the Darkness, the missing pages appeared. Now the third book, it's somehow linked to me, when I touch it, ripped edges appear signaling more missing pages. My book showed up in Gracie's bedroom in the early morning hours on the one year anniversary of Emma's .. death. The same morning that time stopped moving in Storybrooke."

Regina can't help but hear her voice crack when she mentions Emma's death and she has to will herself to breathe, to relax and not let the familiar panic that always surrounds those specific thoughts consume her.

Cora stares at her daughter for a few minutes trying to calculate the book landing in Regina's world with her own timeline of events. A feat that can be quite tricky considering time itself simply doesn't flow here. After careful consideration, she feels herself nodding her head more for herself as she realizes the events from that night might actually align with the morning her daughter is referring to.

"This book .. I think I know how it came to be, Regina." And so Cora begins from where she had left off earlier; how she had felt this sadness for Emma, this all consuming grief wash over her and when she had glanced up at the moon, tears began to trickle a path down her face. A sensation she hadn't felt in ages. Then something strange had happened; the field, the tips of tall grass were sprinkled with a bright yellow hue as the full moon cast a polished glow over the landscape. Upon further inspection, she quickly realized the moon was in fact real. No longer a mirage, riddled in a dullness. It was now cast high up in the midnight sky, with a radius full and wide, the biggest she had ever seen and as the bright moonlight washed over her she felt a rustling wind caress her cheeks. A light chill shot up and down her spine as she shivered and goosebumps pebbled her flesh. Her shoulder length brown hair billowed around her face, the ends tickling her neck as she watched the moon begin to spin. Around and around, it spun so fast, as splashes of moonlight raced across the tall treetops and then the moon was gone. In a flash, the bright sphere vanished; swallowed up by the darkened sky and twinkling stars.

 _Stars?_

Never before had Cora seen them litter the Underworlds night sky. Ever. She stared up amazed as they sparkled like golden dipped diamonds above her. Her eye caught one in particular as it shone the brightest and as she looked on, she found herself become more and more mesmerized by it. Almost, as if in a trance, she couldn't tear her eyes away as it began to shift in color. The star shape glistened in a deep red before it began to move across the night sky, orbiting closer and closer to where she stood. A calmness coursed through her then, as if her emotions were being manipulated somehow, as if the star was a bow and she was the violin; just a mere instrument being plucked.

Her eyes grew wide when the star was suddenly no more and a woman stood before her in it's place and all that seemed to separate them was the rustic wooden fence. Cora couldn't help as she inched close and gripped the top railing. She studied the woman, who was dressed in nothing but a sheer golden robe. The sash was tied tight around a slim waist and long waves of auburn hair cascaded down over her chest. If Cora squinted a bit, she could see a few traces of white strands mixed in as they appeared to shimmer with each blink of an eye.

The woman never spoke, she didn't have to as she took a step forward, reached out a left hand before Cora felt ice cold fingertips touch her forehead. Upon contact, her eyes instantly shut as visions galloped across Cora's mind matched with that all consuming calmness again.

"What did you .. what did she show you, Mother?"

Cora closes her eyes, letting the last image she can remember wash over her before she finally opens them again and looks at her daughter. "The book. A little girl laughing, Henry as a very grown up - young man. For some reason, a tinker bell clock?" Cora shakes her head but takes in her daughters wide eyes and it makes her stop her train of thought; knowing she has just said something relevant. She sees Regina grip the fence, knuckles turning white.

"And .. "

Cora meets her gaze again and she can see unshed tears shimmering inside dark brown. "You. A well. Emma's necklace. This field." Cora looks away and Regina notices the fidgeting as her mother shuffles from one foot to another as a lone finger traces a path along a crack in the fence.

"And .. what else?"

"Nothing, Regina. The field was .. it." Cora still won't meet her gaze when Regina leans forward, peering over the top of the fence as if she can just magically will the woman to appear for herself as brown eyes rake over the land. She sighs, knowing it is a ridiculous notion as she shifts her gaze back to her mother and studies her features.

She murmurs, "I know there's more you aren't telling me. I also know I can just get it out of Hook, one way or another .. I haven't forgotten what he said earlier, Mother .. how you helped him get me here. So, out with it." Her voice is regal, rich in tone from her previous Queen days and Cora recognizes it for what it's worth.

"Hook. Me. Hades. The mansion .. and .. the final battle."

Regina gasps and Cora feels herself being spun to face her. "What the hell do you mean the final battle?! We .. we already _did_ that."

"Well, yes .. but it appears Emma made a deal she didn't understand, Regina."

"Oh really? Or more like, unbeknownst to her; she made an arrangement where _she_ has to do someone else's dirty work, hmm? Let me guess, this final battle, Emma has to conquer Hades, yes? And it just so happens to be what the Sun and Moon want done. Am I getting warm, Mother?"

"Yes." Cora at least has the good sense to look torn by this news. Sad even, Regina thinks as she studies her mother and tries to glimpse any sign of espionage at play. She doesn't but still it's hard to wrap her brain around the notion that all of this just so happened to fall right into her mother's lap. That this woman appeared to _her_ of all people.

As if Cora can read her mind, "I don't know why she came to me, Regina. Why she showed _me,_ perhaps because you are my daughter and despite how strained our relationship is and was, well, I don't think that really matters to them." Cora tilts her head up toward the night sky and Regina narrows her eyes as she glances up herself. She has to resist the urge to give the fucking moon the finger.

"So, Emma and I .. we are just the universe's prophesized bitch." She mutters as she tugs her coat tighter around herself. "Lovely." And she doesn't think she has it in her for another battle. Another war that her and Emma have to figure out how to conquer and then she feels a nausea wash through her as Henry's words echo inside her head.

 _"But, you better come back to me .. don't you dare die too."_

Henry would never forgive her if she doesn't find her way back to him and Gracie. But, what if all of this is just some kind of ploy? Some kind of trap right from the start? What if there never was a way to beat fate and live in free will? What if Fate has indeed been masterminding this all along, like some cruel joke that only some invisible force gets to laugh at while eating popcorn and sipping on a frizzy beverage? Her mind keeps running, lapping thoughts around until she feels a gentle nudge against her shoulder.

"Regina .. I have faith you will win. You and Emma will defeat Hades and - "

"And then what? Did she tell you that Emma will be spared and get to come home then? That the last two years will somehow just be magically erased for us? That she will simply get to come back to me and our kids, Mother? Oh, wait, do _I_ die now instead and Emma gets to live? Tell me, where's the happily ever after in this scenario?! Just tell me!"

Cora looks away, she can't bear to see the torment that rests inside her daughters eyes, the shakiness that coats her voice as her body trembles with unbridled rage. She has to glance away because it hurts to not have those answers for her at the same time knowing that any answer supplied is a bleak outcome anyway. She wishes she can give her daughter that happily ever after with Emma. She wishes it fiercely because it's her fault Regina lost her innocence to begin with. It's _her_ fault Regina lost Daniel. A quiet determination begins to take root inside of her then, swirling up and festering, growing even bigger as it lands; nestling between where bravery and doing what's right resides. It sparks that inner core and she snaps her eyes back to lock with her daughters.

"So, help me, Regina, if it's the last thing I do, you and Emma will be reunited and get that happy ending you two so richly deserve. _A_ _fter_ we kick Hades ass, of course." She grins wide, white teeth gleaming in the moonlight and for the first time since Emma died, Regina feels hope spring to life inside of her.

~sqsqsqsq~

Emma is sitting on the front step when Regina comes up the cracked path. Their eyes lock and Regina feels the familiar warmth seep through her that only Emma's gaze can invoke. Regina doesn't say anything, she doesn't have to as her hand reaches out for Emma's and the younger woman is tugged up and toward the front door. A door that is now painted in a rich dark blue, Regina can't help but notice and her gut tells her that this color means sadness on the spectrum of Emma's very own personal mood chart. She grips Emma's hand tighter as her wife follows her up the stairs and into their bedroom.

"Regina .. I - "

A fingertip brushes across her lips silencing her and she watches Regina shake her head as she is pushed down onto the soft mattress. Regina begins to undress and she nods her head beckoning for Emma to do the same while the moonlight traces patterns across Regina's newly exposed flesh. Emma's fingers slowly lift up her own shirt following her wife's silent direction and she feels the soft material brush past her face. When both women are left in nothing but their bra and underwear, that is when Regina finally speaks.

"I love you Emma and I'm going to get you out of here .. finally back to where you belong, with me and our children."

She sits down in the middle of the bed, her knees kissing the mattress beneath her as Emma mirrors her pose, facing her before lacing their fingers together. She takes a deep breath, knowing what she is about to say will shatter all of her wife's illusions but it needs to be said. It needs to be addressed and accepted because if it isn't, Regina will just be hurt more in the end and Emma can't bear for that to happen. She's done enough of that to her already and she can't play a part in it again.

"Regina .. I won't be able to go back with you. I'm not .. I'm no longer alive in that world. Only here." Emma has to look away from her wife's dark brown eyes as she feels the prickle of tears strike her own. Regina wipes them away, the pad of her thumb trailing down Emma's cheek as she shakes her head with quiet determination.

"No, there's got to be a way to .. I refuse to believe that the book and all it implies is just some cruel twist from _Fate_."

"I think we were granted help, baby. A way for us to help the other ..with moving on." She whispers the last three words and if Regina hadn't been studying her lips, her mouth with such intensity she would have missed what Emma had said altogether.

She immediately pushes her away at the same time Emma reaches for her and she hears herself shriek, "No! They didn't help you .. help me, _us_.. they - "

"Regina .. please. I .. what I saw in the mirror earlier, how sad you've been and .. " Emma's voice breaks as fresh tears begin to fall and Regina loses all thought as she inches nearer to her wife; pulling Emma close against her chest.

"I'm sorry, Regina .. I'm .. " Words get mumbled into the crook of her neck as she feels her heart shatter all over again while she continues to hold Emma tight.

"I just want to save you like you saved me." Regina whispers before tears begin to fall and she buries her face against Emma's chest. She feels the comforting weight of her wife's arms wrap around her, as soothing fingertips run up and down her back; tracing a gentle path across her bare skin. The touch calms her, brings her back to the here and now as she feels the mounting grief and panic leave her.

A brush of kisses run a path up to Emma's neck and she feels her heartrate pick up as Regina breathes three words into her ear. "Make me forget."

Emma leans back a little, cupping Regina's face between her palms as dark brown eyes melt with her own sea green. "I don't think that's possible, Regina."

"Try." Lips gently whisper.

She nods her head as Regina deepens a kiss and the tip of her tongue finds Emma's. Both women take their time exploring the other's flesh with teasing and nipping touches. Fingertips ghost along flushed skin as their bodies dance together among rumpled sheets. Their lovemaking is slow, sensual, and both women feel cherished, worshipped as they tip each other over that formidable precipice. So lost are they in one another that neither woman notices the full moon spinning faster and faster up high in the night sky.

~sqsqsqsq~


	25. Chapter 25

**A.N.** _The song/lyrics mentioned in this chapter is from,_ Everything I do, I do it for you, by Bryan Adams .. _I've also been listening to_ Tell your heart to beat again by Danny Gokey ..

~sqsqsqsq~

"Luna!"

A deep voice bellows her name and cat like eyes snap open, wide and brimming with a shimmering trepidation as she stops her twirling. Just seconds before a hand lands swiftly along her shoulder, gripping it tight.

Her eyes glance up before they shadow to a yellow green hue as they catch a stormy gaze, an intense stare that makes her breath shiver.

"Father .. I .. " She stumbles over her words and she watches as he tilts his head, his gaze turning to a question as his sharp blue grey eyes bare into her soul.

Because she doesn't stammer. Not ever, but she is caught and her cheeks flush pink as she tentatively takes a step back and slides his touch away from her shoulder.

"Since when do you .. do you spy on me?" She crosses her arms in front of her chest and tilts her chin up, trying her best at an air of regality. She tries and fails as she watches her father pull his shoulder's back, standing tall and majestic while the jewels on his crown twinkle along with all the stars that litter the blackened sky behind them.

"Nice try, my moon." He wags his finger in her direction before he raises a palm up toward the still spinning moon that rests high up in the sky as he slowly curls his fingers into a fist and slams it down onto his other palm.

Thunder bellows loud and crisp; a deafening sound that crashes along the air waves before he swirls a hand high up over his head, beckoning a streak of lightning to flash.

He shuts the wide bay window right before sheets of rain pelt against the glass but not before he exhales a huge breath from his lungs and Luna narrows her eyes to those cat like slits of hers again as she watches a storm cloud snake itself around her dimming moon.

"God, father - " She quickly covers her mouth because she knows better than to speak his name in vain. She averts her gaze, gliding a toe across the seashell smooth carpet that covers the entire top labyrinth of their castle.

A castle that rests on the highest mountain as it looks down on all of heaven.

He clears his throat and she stares at the ocean blue carpet. She buries her toes into the soft fabric and she wishes she could immerse her entire self in them. Hide away from her father's angry glare and his voice that is riddled with disappointment.

"Please tell me, I have heard wrong, Luna. That you and your brother have not .. that Michael is wrong."

"I can't do that, Father. I'm sorry." She glances up, quickly meeting his hard stare before looking down again, staring at her hidden toes as she wiggles them against the plush fibers. She wishes Michael was wrong, but he never is. He's an Angel after all. And Angels aren't capable of .. well, not anymore they aren't anyway, she thinks as her thoughts run to Gabe and then to Cas. And their fall from grace, clipped wings and all. She misses them and then she gulps because if Father's wrath was capable of that then surely, what her and her brother did? Well, who knows what _they_ are now in for.

She gulps again and slowly brings her head up to meet his gaze.

~sqsqsqsq~

It rains in Storybrooke while it snows in the UnderWorld. That's how it goes. An upside down mirror if there ever was one. Hades waves a hand and his eyes glow a sapphire blue against the flicker of flames that lick inside the fireplace. His brother is mad about something, he thinks as he paces around his damp and musty cave. He wonders which kid pissed him off this time. His brother has so many children really and Hades never did understand how the all mighty God keeps it all straight in his head. He chuckles to himself, as he goes through certain names like an eenie, meenie, miney, moe game. He lashes across Hercules and he feels his cold blood begin to boil. A heat rushes through him as he zaps a hole clear through one of the walls.

Damn it.

He quickly waves his hand and the hole instantly closes up. Fresh as a daisy. He smirks and then collapses on his make shift throne. He feels himself pout, as he buries his chin into his hand. No, it wouldn't be the ever annoying perfect Zeus or his son, Hercules. Or Michael. The most trusted of Gods. The most trusted of Angels. His thoughts are consumed with his old hunting grounds, to the place he used to call home until he was shoveled down into this dive bar from Hell.

Destined to spend all of eternity, here. Lording over this realm's UnderWorld. His pout turns into an all out pity party across his features as he can't help but yell out loud for the one millionth time, "So, I tried to kill Hercules! And take over Heaven .. so?! Everyone has a little bit of villain in them, Brother! Even you! Oh, all mighty one! Ha, take that, you imbecile!" He shakes his fist toward the ceiling. He knows his brother can hear him, if he so chooses.

~sqsqsqsq~

"Shut up, Hades, you Heathen." He mumbles to himself before his attention goes back to his daughter's.

"How could you, Luna? Why?" His voice is soft, questioning and Luna feels her heart crumple a little inside her chest.

"I just wanted to help." It's her turn to mumble, her voice quiet and soft. And she sounds like a little girl again, he thinks as he stares at his fully grown daughter.

Her brother ducks into the room and he gulps as he watches his fathers eyes turn to steel when they meet his own.

"We both just wanted to help .. the Savior, she - " The young man snaps his mouth shut as he watches his father raise a palm to warrant silence.

"Was not to be used in matters outside her world. Sol, my son, what you did .. what the _both_ of you did is .. unthinkable. Unspeakable!"

"Father, please - " He tries again but the firm and steady hand is raised higher now.

"You messed with humans. We do not meddle in - "

"Angels do! Miracles happen all the time!" She can't help but shriek out these thoughts as they barrel up and out of her mouth like a volcano erupting.

"Not all the time. Miracles are special. Rare. And you didn't provide a miracle, Luna. You two .. manipulated."

All three of them wince at that word before he continues, "How in the heavens am I supposed to fix what you two did?"

~sqsqsqsq~

The wind whips into the room and she feels Regina shiver against her before she curls herself deeper into Emma's side.

Emma had been watching her sleep, kissing a fingertip every once in a while as Regina's breaths grew deeper. She slips out from the bed slowly, not wanting to stir Regina awake just yet as she pads barefoot across the room and shuts the windows that litter two walls of the corner laced room. She kneels down in front of the fireplace and waves her hand, eyes sparkling blue green as the flames begin to dance before her.

 _ **Eleven years ago .. Storybrooke, Maine** _

_"Emma, what are you doing? It's freezing out here."_

 _"Hmm .. just watching the moon."_

 _"Oh, is it dancing or something?" She chuckles and you feel your heart pitter patter inside your chest. Cause it's her sexy deep rooted laugh. Her racy laugh that can make your knees quiver. You turn and flash her your all knowing smile because you know what she is doing. Trying to entice you inside._

 _She huffs and rolls her eyes again before she reaches out her hand, beckoning you to come into the house. "You'll catch your death out here." She wiggles her fingers and you tug her forward._

 _"Emma!"_

 _You magic a fire, a few feet away from the two of you and it's instantly warm as you wrap your arms around her and pull her close. She hums against your lips as you kiss her deeply. And you feel the warmth all the way to your toes and the tips of your fingertips as you begin to sway with her. Dancing to a song from your ipod that you magicked to play around the two of you while the moon and the stars, the entire night sky becomes your audience as you both giggle and twirl._

 _It's almost a New Year .. and you've been together for almost eight months. Eight months since the banishment of the Darkness and the Prophecy book came to life. You want to marry her. You have a feeling like with everything else that happens between the two of you, that talking about it, proposing, it will happen when it's supposed to .. so you don't worry. You don't overthink. You are still. Still and sure inside Regina's arms. Always._

 _A new song begins to play on your magical Ipod shuffle and you dip her low as she laughs. It's her content and care free laugh. Light and soulful. And it's one of your favorite sounds in the entire world now._

 _You don't know how you lived a day without it before. A day without her really. She tugs the collar of your coat, pulling you close as a heart swelling melody washes around the two of you._

 _You clasp her hand in yours, as you pull her close against you with your other hand, letting it rest along the small of her back. You nuzzle her cheek and you hear her sigh, softly .. her, 'I love you, sigh' as she kisses below your ear. You hold her tighter and sing a few of the lyrics gently into the warmth of her neck as a light snow begins to fall around you._

 _" You know it's true .. everything I do .. I do it for you .. "_

~sqsqsqsq~

Emma wipes a few tears away from under her eyes as she slowly stands up and makes her way back to her slumbering wife. She glances out the window as she passes by and her eyes widen at the accumulation that has already fallen. She can't see the make believe moon anymore, a cloud is silencing its light but the street lamp shines enough so she can see the heavy band of snow still coming down strong. She grabs a feathered down comforter from the closet shelf and slips in beside Regina again; covering her in the process.

The memory of their one and only winter together in Storybrooke still plays like a movie inside her head as she closes her eyes and drifts asleep; dreaming of Regina and snowflake laced dances by a magical fire's midnight glow.

~sqsqsqsq~

Both of his children look down at the floor. At a loss for words apparently, he thinks as he mumbles to himself. He calls them children in his head but they are fully grown and have been for quite some time. But being eternal can mess with you. Faces no longer age. Bodies stay stunted. And sometimes it's hard to distinguish everything that comes with trying to run an entire Universe. To keep tabs on all the checks and balances. So, he delegates but it's not like he gets vacation time or a weekend to go play golf. He isn't human, sure he created humans but he isn't one of them and he doesn't understand the vast obsession all of his children seem to have with Earth and the human race.

The grass is certainly not greener there and yet all of his children, from Angels down to the cherubs .. they all want a glimpse of it. A taste. Some want to rule it. Like Lucifer. And Hades? Well, he wants a piece of that all elusive diamond inside the sky too. The Heathen!

"Father .. we granted a wish. For the Queen and The Savior." Luna whispers their titles and he sees the awe in her eyes. Hears it in her voice. He knows Luna, his Moon, has had an eye on those two for years. His son too. Sol. His fiery Sun. The Sun and the Moon. Michael had said he didn't think they were ready to take on the responsibility that comes with bearing those titles but he had faith in them. Faith and Trust. He was foolish.

He sighs .. a heavy breath escaping past his lips as he hunches his shoulders in defeat. "It was a wish you had no right to grant. You aren't Genies inside a lamp. You aren't Angels granting a Miracle. You don't get to play life and death. That's not what your titles entail. You knew that. Don't play coy. You knew your limits. You abused your power you hold inside this Universe. You twisted someone's Fate, for your will."

"But they are the ones who realigned Fate, Father. Who put order back inside our Universe. Surely, that should have been rewarded." She can't help but exclaim with determined eyes.

"Luna, why is the Savior in the UnderWorld? How was that granting her wish?"

Sol takes a step forward and Luna rolls her eyes at her twin brother. She doesn't need him protecting her. She can handle herself. She's been doing it for .. well, forever, really.

"She didn't go to the light. We don't know what happened. She was supposed to go to the light." He explains with a shrug.

Luna fidgets and Sol catches it from the corner of his eye. He snaps his head in her direction and his brown eyes blaze a sandy dune red. "What did you do?"

She fumbles with her fingers, pulling on her golden sash as she quickly runs a few fingers through her auburn hair. "I .. well, Hades needs to go. Permanently." She emphasizes the last word as her cat like eyes bear into her brothers and then steal a quick glance up at her towering father. "He seriously does. You know this, we all know it. So, why not let the Savior work her magic and then, she can .. be whatever she wants to be up here. An Angel, heck, even a God. She deserves it."

Sol's mouth opens and closes and then he quickly feels his sister's forehead. "Nope, you're not sick .. just delusional."

"Knock it off. I am of sane mind." Her brother scoffs and mumbles under his breath and she can't bear to meet her father's gaze. She gulps and feels herself shrink underneath his continued scrutiny.

"You are swooning over this woman like she is .. is .. "

"Father, I believe the word you are looking for is Rock Star .. or maybe even a more general approach, Celebrity." Sol grimaces and shudders against that word and all it entails.

"Look, none of us can touch him, he's in the UnderWorld, so _someone_ had to infiltrate - "

"We aren't the Navy Seals, Luna!" Sol shrieks and he sounds like a six year old again as his eyes grow wide.

"That Heathen needs to be stopped and Emma can do it! She and Regina -"

"Oh, it's Emma and Regina now?" He rolls his eyes and points a finger at her, "You tricked me. And that is not cool, Luna."

"Enough! The two of you! Just enough!" Cold grey eyes lock onto theirs and they both look away.

"At least, you have the decency to _look_ shameful." He wags a finger in his daughter's direction, "You and I are going to have a chat. Soon. Until then, you are not to leave this room. And you .. " He glances at his son, "You are not to leave your chambers as well."

"But Father .. we have .. our duties, the Sun and - "

"Oh, that ship has sailed, my boy. It is but a mere distant spot on the horizon for you. _And_ you!" He glares at Luna before he spins around and walks out; slamming the heavy door behind him.

"Why does this place even have doors? He sees everything!" She kicks her stuffed moon and watches as it goes flying into the corner of the room.

"You are a piece of work and _not_ the majestic kind!" Sol sneers. The door gets slammed shut for a second time as she jumps against the noise.

 _God damn it._

~sqsqsqsq~


End file.
